Michael Jackson with Mike Tyson (top) and Muhammad Ali (bottom).

Via Film Scenes
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Bill Richmond, the former American slave who fled to Britain and became a bare-knuckle boxer and boxing coach. Depicted above in a hand coloured etching from 1810 and below, stood behind his student Thomas Molineaux in a depiction of his 1811 fight with the champion Tom Cribb.

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A couple of young boys practising boxing.

Source: Tumblr
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American boxer Joe Rivers sparring with the women's lightweight
world champion, Louise Adler in 1926 while helping her train for an
upcoming title defence.

fscclub.com
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Picture taken on October 26, 1951, of the fight between the aging former champ, Joe Louis and a much younger up-and-coming fighter, Rocky Marciano. Louis had returned to the ring after retiring to clear his considerable debt to the IRS so when offered $300,000 to fight one of the hardest hitters around, it was too good to refuse.

Marciano, who grew up idolising Louis, demolished the former champion, knocking him to the floor in the eighth round before hitting him clean out of the ring, causin...
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Title:  The Close of the Battle or The Champion Triumphant

Date:  19th Century

Artist:  Unknown (published by Walker and Knight)

Information:  This hand coloured etching depicts the second of two epic battles between the champion Tom Cribb (who won both fights) and Tom Molineaux, a former slave and the first American challenger to the title.

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This poster from 1864 (three years prior to the introduction of the Queensbury Rules) depicts three of the last four bare knuckle boxing champions who were among campaigners trying to organise an official World Championship. From left to right they are; Tom Sayers (champion 1858 – 1860), Jem Mace (champion 1861 – 1862 & 1866 – 1871) and Tom King (champion 1862 – 1863).
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Photograph of Jack Johnson vs. Tommy Burns taken on December 26 1908 in Sydney, Australia. Johnson won the fight in the 14th round and became the first African American to be the World Heavyweight Champion, sparking the original hunt for the so called ‘Great White Hope’.
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Title:  The Bruiser Bruis'D, Or, the Knowing-Ones Taken-In

Date:  1750

Artist:  Unknown

Infomation:  Engraving of the fight between John 'Jack' Broughton and Jack Slack. Broughton was an instrumental influence on the early boxing scene after introducing the first rules aimed at providing some safety measures for fighters. In contrast Slack, after winning this fight and become the champ, went on to become the first known person to fix prize fights; he is also credited with inventing the rabbit pu...
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Title:  The Boxing Boys

Date:  c. 1600 B.C.E.

Artist:  Unknown

Date:  c. 1600 B.C.E.

Infomation:  This fresco from Thera (modern-day Santorini in Greece) depicts two Minoan
boys engaged in boxing and is the earliest image depicting the use of boxing gloves.
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Muhammad Ali avoids a punch from long-time adversary Joe Frazier in their third and final fight. Known as ‘The Thrilla in Manila’, the Heavyweight Title fight was fought on October 1st and is seen by many as one of the best boxing matches of all time.


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This poster depicts Heavy Weight boxer Joe Louis and was aimed at getting new recruits to join the American army during World War Two. It was produced around 1942 during the ‘Brown Bomber’s' reign, which stretched from 1937 – 1949.
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Adolph Wolgast fighting Tommy Murphy in February 1913

More vintage boxing pictures
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An interesting look at Muay Thai boxing through the eyes of a 1920s Englishman. Siamese boxing (as it was known in the West) had begun to grow in popularity by this time, having first being taken to Europe during the First World War. Note that the fight takes place to music, much like the Brazilian martial art Capoeira.
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Title: Illustration of John Graham Chambers
Date: 1883
Info:  John Graham Chambers (1843 – 1883) was an all-around sportsman from Wales who excelled in several disciplines including rowing, walking, cycling, wrestling and athletics. However his major contribution was to devise the rules for boxing, known as the Marquess of Queensberry Rules.

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Prince Narusuan was a key figure in the development of the martial arts in Thailand (formerly Siam). In c. 1585, Narusuan succeeded in reorganizing a defeated Thai army. He made sure his men all learned martial arts leading to successful campaigns against the Burmese soldiers who had occupied the country since 1568.

Then, in a dramatic final showdown, he faced the leader of the Burmese army in open battle, both on the backs of war elephants. After a violent fight, Narusuan’s martial arts sk...
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Nai Khanom Tom is a Muay Thai boxing legend of the highest calibre. Known as the ‘Father of Muay Thai’, Nai Khanom Tom was taken prisoner along with thousands of his countrymen when the capital Ayutthaya fell in 1767 to the Burmese. In 1774, a great festival was held by the King of Burma and as part of the celebrations, Nai Khanom Tom, still a prisoner of war, was to fight ten of the king’s men in a row.

After dispatching each of them, the Thai boxer became a legend and was rewarded wi...
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King Prachao Sua, A.K.A The Tiger King (1662 – 1709) loved Muay Thai so much that he would often sneak off in disguise and enter tournaments. He is remembered for his bravery in the ring and fought many notable fighters from nearby villages who, had they known who he really was, would have never have fought him. The Tiger King helped popularize Thai Boxing amongst his subjects and formally made it a part of the army’s training. He influenced the fighting styles, equipment and the martial ...
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