Catalog (59)

Offered for your consideration is a vintage, all-original, framed paper advertising sign for the cure of Gonorrhea, Gleet and Syphilis in men. Of interest is the matching 10.5" x 7.5" wood frame with the lightly stamped word "OKAY" on the top. This unusual piece of advertising dates to the early 1900's.

Condition: Mild, unobtrusive wear to the paper. The blue round label is affixed to the glass, not the actual paper. The frame retains 2 early holes used for hanging along with various surface dings and an early slice of wood missing from the right side of frame.

Historically, Pabst's Okay Specifics was cited by the 1906 FDA Act for various violations including failure to mention alcohol content, having no known curative ingredient, etc, resulting in frequent seizure and destruction of the product!

Measuring 7 1/2 x 9 1/2, this lovely, 1930's, English or Continental origin, Black subject diecut features a very pretty, smiling young woman in a straw bonnet with book.

This pleasant diecut is in excellent condition and comes protected in an attractive, walnut-tone, oval decorative frame! The frame bears some minor veneer loss that does not impact the frame integrity, nor is it immediately noticeable.

A sweet piece!

Measuring 6 1/2 x 11 3/4, this lovely, 1920's, Black subject diecut by Enoch Morgan & Sons, England, features three individual Sapolio Soap diecuts used to advertise the company product. Each diecut features the head of a young black boy centered inside a piece of fruit or vegetable- a cabbage, a watermelon and a (?) pear.

This pleasant trio of Sapolio Soap diecuts is in excellent condition and comes protected in an attractive, walnut-toned, oak decorative frame!

Quite visually appealing!

Offered is a graphically appealing, 1950s, Kodak Film Advertising Display. This beauty comes in the original box and shows very little wear. There is scant patina from minimal use, minor surface scratches and blemishes, and one bend in the metal as seen in the photo. The display turns easily on its circular base, and the colors are as bright as if it was brand new! Definitely a discerning collector's dream!

Measures 20.75" tall x 7.25" in diameter. The overall height includes the removal top pediment.

A five-sided display seldom found in this condition!

Offered for your consideration is an appealing, circa late 1900s, deep aqua blue painted wood jewelers sign. The sign was acquired from a Columbia, South Carolina estate and measures approximately 63" long x 7" wide. It is in very nice overall condition except for areas of paint loss, some crackling and general wear of a vintage sign. An unobtrusive 4 inch split is noted near the left edge and some scattered paint flecks add to a wonderful patina. A modest scratch is apparent through the word "JEWELLER".

Lettering is original and in very good condition except for some unobtrusive scuffing and loss. Please note that the lettering is bordered with black enhancement. There are 2 holes, one on each side which were originally used for mounting on the building exterior.

Will make a great addition to your collection.

Measuring 12.5 inches wide by 8 inches high, this vintage, hand-painted on board, 1940's No Smoking sign is most emphatic in its message: "NO SMOKING MEANS NO SMOKING"! Most definitely a conversation piece! Fab visual display! Condition is good with paint wear to edges as seen in photos. Light pencil lines to guide the hand-painting are still visible on the front of the sign. (The left side of sign appears darker in photos than the right side. This is a function of less-than-perfect photography! Coloration and brightness are uniform throughout! No dark or shadowy areas!)

Measuring 9 inches in width x 3 inches in height x 1.75 inches deep, this vintage 1920’s, country store advertising display reads, “We Give And Redeem Gold Stamps”. A very unusual find!

Black with hand-painted, gold lettering, this interesting advertising display would sit nicely on a shelf! In fine, all-original condition with the expected nicks and superficial surface scratches.

Measuring a diminutive 2 inches in diameter and in mint condition, this interesting and unusual celluloid advertising pocket mirror features a person dosing with a magical "Nature's Remedy" tablet! (**Please note that any white spots in the photos are light reflections ONLY and not damage to the mirror.**)

The mirror front has a faded salmon colored border surrounding an image of a person's face with protruding tongue, about to swallow a "NR" (Nature's Remedy)tablet.

Imprinted around the circumference of the mirror is the following, "Take One Tonight - You'll feel Better In The Morning."

AND....

"Better Than Pills For Liver Ills - Get a 25 Cent Box"

Original mirrored backing is in very fine condition with just a few very minute, superficial scratches. Some fading of color around the very edge of the mirror as seen in photos.

Manufacturer name stamped on bottom edge: "Parisian Novelty Company, Chicago".

An interesting little advertising piece!

This fabulous 1930's American Beach cast iron sign reading "AMERICAN BEACH FLA Negro Ocean Playground" is in very fine condition with remnants of original paint and vintage patina. This is NOT a reproduction! This sign was originally sold to be used as a license plate topper by African American folks frequenting this beach. It measures 11 inches in length x 4.50 inches high at its tallest point.

American Beach was established in 1935 on Florida's east coast under the leadership of Abraham Lincoln Lewis, one of seven co-founders of the Afro-American Life Insurance Company, and one of Florida's first black millionaires. His vision was to create a beach resort as a benefit for company executives and as an incentive for employees.

In the era of Jim Crow segregation laws, few public places in Florida or the rest of the South were open to African Americans. From the Depression until well into the 1960's, American Beach served as a holiday and vacation destination for thousands of African Americans, and was a magnet for black celebrities such as entertainers Cab Calloway and Ray Charles, heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis and writer Zora Neale Hurston.

But in 1964, the area began to decline. Hurricane Dora destroyed much of the beach, and passage of the Civil Rights Act meant that blacks were, finally, no longer restricted to segregated beaches and the businesses that catered to them.

A fabulous and historically relevant piece of Black Americana!

Offered is a visually-appealing, advertising leech bowl boldly embossed "From The Rexall Store". This two-seam bowl is in excellent condition with various unobtrusive, faint surface scuffs commensurate with an older piece of glass.

The bowl measures 4.25 inches at the mouth, 4 inches tall and is approximately 5 inches at its widest point. It dates to the 1940 era.

Reading "SAFETY FIRST" "EMERGENCY SHOWER EYE BATH", this green, white and black painted sign dates to the 1950's and was likely meant for use in either a professional or academic laboratory.

The sign measures 14 inches wide x 10 inches high, and is quite bright and visually appealing.

This painted metal sign remains in fine condition with minor surface scratching, tiny areas of paint loss and tiny areas of superficial rusting, all as noted in photos.

Measuring 4 inches high with a 3.75 inch base diameter, this authentic looking 1919 Patent model of the historic Philadelphia Liberty Bell, is in wonderful all-original condition!

Given away as a premium for opening a bank account, this still bank advertises the Mechanics Savings Bank of Hartford, Connecticut.

The bank is complete with the famous Liberty Bell crack down its front as well as this slogan etched around its top, "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All The Inhabitants Thereof. LEV XXV 10".

Manufactured by the Bankers S & C System Company, Cleveland, Ohio, this bank bears a patent date of February 18, 1919, as inscribed on its base.

Made of metal and wood. The whereabouts of the original key is unknown but it is likely that any flat metal key of the period and appropriate size would open it.

A fine decorative piece for either the still bank collector or Revolutionary War buff!

A very RARE and highly appealing Black Memorabilia Advertising Diecut!

Marked "Copyright 1924", in the lower left hand corner, this extremely hard-to-find advertising piece measures 10.5 inches wide x 13.5 inches high. Colorful and visually interesting, the heavy cardboard diecut depicts an engaging Uncle Wabash serenely strumming his banjo on his front porch! Guess the message to the consumer was, "Eat one of Uncle Wabash's cupcakes to experience your own little slice of heaven and serenity!"

Condition of this charming piece of Black Historical ephemera is quite good given its 80+ years of age!! Old water staining to bottom of the diecut does little to detract from the piece. Crease line to one cupcake edge. Appropriate age foxing to back.

Offered for separate purchase are two, RARELY FOUND, salesman sample boxes of Sharpoint Black Face Wire Cobbler's Nails measuring a very diminutive 2" tall x 1.25" wide and 1.75" tall x 1" wide!

The trademark for Sharpoint is a cleverly-designed, eye-catching, broadly smiling image of an African American gent. If one looks closely, one can clearly see the words "Sharpoint Cobblers Nails" printed within the black space of the gent's mouth! A very "sharp" advertising strategy!

Sharpoint Wire Cobbler's Nails were manufactured by the Charles F. Baker Co, Boston, Massachusetts. The smaller box retains its end flap which features both the manufacturing and patent information, with the patent number corresponding to a 1933 USA Patent date. Each box amazingly still retains the original cobbler's nails!

The boxes are in very good condition considering their age and the fact that they held tiny, sharp nails for over 80 years! As stated earlier, the smaller box does retain the end flap which features manufacturing info. The larger box is missing this flap. The cover litho on each box remains very crisp and clear. Typical, age-related edge wear is noted. Please peruse all photos for condition details. The boxes have been shrink-wrapped to protect the integrity of the cardboard, and they do contain the nails.

These VERY, VERY RARELY FOUND SALESMAN SAMPLE size boxes WITH ORIGINAL NAILS are offered at $125 each, or the two boxes can be purchased as a pair for $198.00 firm.

This vintage 1940's cardboard advertising fan for the Petersburg Furniture Company, Inc., located at 100 North Sycamore Street, Petersburg, Virginia, measures 12" long x 7 " wide and is mounted on a wooden stick handle.

Featuring a double heart motif, the advertising slogan spouts, "When Two Hearts Beat As One, It's Time To Buy Your Furniture From "Old Reliable" Petersburg Furniture Company, "Petersburg's Oldest Furniture Store!

Neat mid-20th-century advertising piece in very fine original condition!

Measuring a diminutive 2 inches in diameter, this intricately-detailed, colorfully lithographed, celluloid-faced advertising pocket mirror is in mint condition!

The pastoral image features a country maiden leading a cow from the woods while holding a can of Horlick's Malted Milk.

Imprinted on the cow's side is the following, "Ask for Horlick's at all Fountains and Hotels."

Around the circumference of the mirror, the product is further advertised:

"This maiden fair was dressed in silk,
She drinks the Horlick's Malted Milk."

" Tea of coffee it does replace,
In Health or Sickness,
Wins the Race."

Original mirrored backing is in very fine condition with just a few very minute , superficial scratches. Marked in microscopically written print ob bottom edge: The Whitemead & Hoag Company, Newark, New Jersey.

A beautiful little advertising piece!

Measuring 4 inches long x 3 inches wide, this extraordinarily RARE Aunt Jemima Pancake Flour Advertising String Puzzle Toy dates to the 1905-1916 time period when it was used by the R. T. Davis Mill Company of St. Joseph, Missouri, to promote their product!

The puzzle is constructed of a cardboard paper material with Aunt Jemima’s image lithographed on the front and product advertising on the back. This puzzle toy was a “give-away” item--- customers could write away for the “free” puzzle by sending two 2 cent stamps for a “set of Aunt Jemima and her Pickaninny Dolls”.

Aunt Jemima is in all ORIGINAL condition and has no age imperfection to speak of other than minor creasing near the three string holes, undoubtedly created when someone long ago attempted to solve the puzzle---“separate the two cardboard pieces without untying the string!”

This RARELY found piece of early Black Memorabilia and/or Aunt Jemima advertising would be fabulous framed between two pieces of glass! A must-have for the serious Black Americana collector! These Aunt Jemima paper string advertising puzzles are simply not seen anymore- they are very rarely found in today's market due to the fragile nature of their composition!

On a cold October day in 1977, an auction of the former estate of Dr. T.D.M. Wilson of Washington, Pennsylvania, took place. The last surviving relative to live in Dr. Wilson's former 1890 mansion had moved to smaller quarters, and many artifacts reflecting the Wilson's family history had to be auctioned off.

Dr. T.D.M. Wilson graduated from Jefferson Medical College in 1875, and the following offered items from this estate auction provide an historical glimpse into his long medical career.

The first item is a fabulous 19th century brass DOCTOR T.D.M. Wilson sign measuring 14L x 9W inches, which likely adorned the entrance way to Dr. Wilson's office.

Also offered in this grouping is a rare group photo of Dr. Wilson (4th from the left) and other Phi Kappa Sigma members. The frame measures 16.5"L x 12.5"W. While the photo is a bit faded, the image is remarkable and includes a distinguished group of Phi Kappa Sigma members.

The third and fourth items in this grouping are a small, framed, 1909 AMA membership certificate with Dr. Wilson's name inscribed, and a very unusual IRS narcotic SPECIAL TAX STAMP from 1926. This Narcotic form is unique in that it names Dr. Wilson as the single physician allowed to dispense narcotics within the 23rd District of the State of Pennsylvania.

Finally, 2 handwritten letters postmarked in 1884 from Dr. Wilson to his loving wife are included, offering a small glimpse into his personal life.

Together, this is rich grouping of artifacts provides one a unique opportunity to further enhance one's collection of medical objects.