Antique Adverts

Not quite an antique advert but still a great image.  Ovaltine were prolific advertisers and I must have about 40 to 50 different examples of original adverts, mostly over 100 years old.  I hope you like this one.

Source : Womens Magazine, approx 1930, 7.5 x 10.5 inches, £3.45

I really like this one, yet another that nearly made it into my ‘Keep’ pile.  But unfortunatly I’m also a seller, and this one is offered at a surprisingly low price of £7.85.  As usual, I’ll let the image do the talking

Source : Illustrated London News, 1905, 10 x 15 inches, £7.85

These adverts interest me, a snapshot of high class fashion in the late 1890′s.  For such early advertisements they display a surprising appreciation for the power of illustration i.e. pictures sell.

Source : The Graphic, 1897, 10.5 x 14.5 inches, £4.55

Source : The Graphic, approx 1898, 10.5 x 14.5 inches, £4.55

Every now and then I want to keep an advert for my own private collection, and this is one such example.  I’ll let the image do the talking.

Source : The Graphic, 1889, 10.5 x 15 inches, £48.85

The older Birds Custard Ads really were works of art.  Check this out …

Source : Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, 1900, 10.5 x 15 inches, £28.45

What were the advertising gurus at Beechams thinking of when you came up with this ad.  I suppose its quite ‘eye’ catching

Source : The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, 1893, 10×15 inches, £8.85

Today I added a bunch of original Victorian adverts to my website www.VictorianAdverts.com Included in this latest batch of new additions were four superb Cadbury advertisements.  I must share these with you here

Today is an experiment in digitally enhancing an antique Mellin’s Food advert dating from 1904.  First the original, and then the enhanced version below.

Source : Illustrated London News, 1904, 5 x 7 inches, £1.45

I admit I prefer the digitally enhanced version and these will soon be available from my antique advert shop soon, ready for instant download.

Slipping in at just over 100 years old these two adverts are trying to sell us on the benefits of the thermos flask, or thermos jug.  Apparently they are a lot more useful than I’d ever imagined.  I want one.

I especially liked this use … “The bachelors tea and shaving water always ready”

And the informative letter straight from the Indian front …

Sirs, I enclose herewith two small snapshots taken on the India Frontier, showing your “Thermos” flask in use.  I thought they might be of some interest to you.  The person holding the flask is a Gurkha soldier.  These flasks are a very great boon to us who lead an open air life for nine months out of the twelve, and you deserve the heartfelt thanks of al British officers.

J E Colenso, Lieut, 7th Gurkha Rifles

Source : The Graphic, 1909, 10.5 x 14.5 inches, £2.85

Source : The Graphic, 1910, 10.5 x 14.5, £3.45

I’ve revised the invalid chair desktop backgrounds.  I think this is better than the previous one.  Presented in three different sizes for your monitor resolution,

1024 x 768

1280 x 800

1600 x 1200