12-Pc Antique Advertising Tin Collection — Oak Shadow Box

Twelve antique lithographed tins — British, French, and American — spanning tobacco, pharmaceutical, confectionery, gramophone accessories, and sewing notions, spanning roughly the 1900s through the 1950s. This is not a single-category accumulation but a curated cross-section of early 20th-century commercial tin lithography at its most diverse: royal warrant crests, Art Deco typography, hand-illustrated birds and biplanes, spa-town pharmaceutical branding, and door-to-door Americana all sharing the same oak frame. The anchor pieces are the M. Melachrino & Co. Egyptian Cigarettes tin — a Belle Époque prestige brand with grand dépôts in London, Cairo, Shanghai, New York, and Montreal, whose graphics include five royal crests and three Egyptian figure panels — and the Samuel Gawith Squadron Leader Mixture tin, bearing a WWI biplane on turquoise ground from one of England's oldest continuously operating tobacco houses (est. Kendal, 1792). Both brands remain reference points in their respective collector fields.

The twelve tins, individually mounted on Velcro in an open-face oak shadow box:

• Ogden's Redbreast Flake — Imperial Tobacco Co. of Great Britain & Ireland, Liverpool. Large 1 lb format (4.75" × 6.5" × 1.5") with ventilation holes; full-color robin lithograph on warm gold ground. One of the most celebrated graphics in British tobacco tin design, c.1910s–40s.
• Squadron Leader Mixture Tobacco — Samuel Gawith & Co. Ltd., Kendal. Turquoise ground with WWI biplane; "Manufacturers of Fine Tobacco Since 1792." An active brand with a devoted collector following; antique lithographed tins command a premium over modern production.
• M. Melachrino & Co. Egyptian Cigarettes — "Manufactory of the Best Egyptian Cigarettes," 11 Old Bond Street, London; Cairo, Shanghai, New York, Montreal, and Levant Tobacco Depots. Five royal/imperial warrant crests; three Egyptian figure panels. A Smithsonian-collected brand. c.1900s–30s.
• Croydon Navy Cut Mild — "Cool and Fragrant." Orange ground with Art Deco winged badge. British tobacco tin, c.1920s–40s.
• Rhodian Small Size No. 3 Cigarettes — Lambert & Butler, London. Cream ground with lion crest; "Made entirely from the Finest Rhodesian Tobacco." Imperial Tobacco stable, c.1920s–40s.
• J.R. Watkins Laxative Cold Tablets — The J.R. Watkins Company, Winona, MN (est. 1868). Yellow ground with portrait vignette; acetanilide formula dates production to pre-1940s. Classic American door-to-door remedy brand, still in business today.
• Johnson & Johnson Adhesive Plaster (Zinc Oxide) — J&J (Gt. Britain) Limited, Slough, Bucks. Cylindrical roll format, 1 yard × 7 inches, "Plain." Blue houndstooth fabric wrap with illustrated paper label. British subsidiary established 1924; a seldom-seen format.
• Luxeuil État Hygienic Salts — "Paquets Hygiéniques aux Sels Naturels de Luxeuil État." State-certified mineral salts from Luxeuil-les-Bains, a Haute-Saône spa town with Roman-era thermal history. 20-packet box tin, c.1920s–40s.
• Neutroses-Vichy — St. Sidel, Laboratoire Médico-Pharmacologique de Vichy. Alkaline digestive tablets; purple/maroon ground with bold yellow typography. French spa-pharmaceutical tradition, c.1920s–40s.
• Reynard Berlingots, Carpentras — "Les Meilleurs Bombons Digestifs." Round tin; Carpentras, Provence, renowned for its striped hard candies since the 19th century. Menthe (mint) variety. c.1900s–30s.
• Columbia Semi-Permanent Needles — "Each Plays 10 Records." Green square tin; gramophone/phonograph accessory from one of the dominant record brands of the era. Crossover appeal to both tin and gramophone collectors.
• The Lady's Own Toilet Pin Box — "Best Pins / Perfect Points." Made in England. Heraldic shield with rampant horses and floral border; Edwardian sewing/notions tin, c.1900s–20s.

The shadow box is oak-constructed with a flat panel back and open face — wall-ready as displayed, with tins removable via Velcro for individual handling or rearrangement.

CONDITION

Good, as shown. The shadow box presents cleanly with no structural damage. Individual tins display age-consistent wear throughout: the Ogden's Redbreast Flake lid shows light surface crazing to the lithograph, the Melachrino tin has foxing and toning to the upper panel, and the Squadron Leader tin carries minor scuffing to the teal field. The Lady's Own Toilet Pin Box shows the heaviest surface wear in the group. Remaining tins range from Good to Very Good with label wear and edge rubbing appropriate to age.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Overall (Shadow Box): 14" H × 17" W × 3.5" D
• Largest Tin (Ogden's Redbreast Flake): 4.75" × 6.5" × 1.5"
• Smallest Tin: 0.5" × 1.5" × 1.25"
• Lot Count: 12 tins
• Mount Method: Velcro, removable
• Shadow Box: Oak construction, open-face (no glass), wall-ready