THE JOHN GROSSMAN COLLECTION OF ANTIQUE IMAGES Choice And Rare
FOLDING CHRISTMAS TREE (German, c.1910) Standing 21" tall, this elaborate paper decoration was designed to unfold on a tabletop, mantle or counter and be illuminated inside with a candle. No wonder few survived! Four nativity scenes around the base and translucent stars on every branch glowed and flickered when the wick was set aflame.	APPLIED FABRIC SCRAPBOOK (English, c.1890). The popular Victorian pastime of collecting and arranging images in scrapbooks sometimes produced folk art as this wonderful album illustrates. The maker cleverly created dimension, texture and a lifelike quality to these colorful paper scraps by applying swatches of fabric, lace and feathers. An intriguing record of textile history is also documented and preserved on eleven pages. The images were removed from a late 1800s scrapbook by a subsequent owner and remounted in a 1930s album.
FOLDOUT VALENTINE CARDS (German, c.1895). Victorians adored celebrations of romance: first loves, engagements, weddings, anniversaries and of course Valentine's Day. By the 1840s, they popularized the custom of exchanging greeting cards made of gorgeous lace paper. By the 1890s, they advanced greeting card production to an artform of elaborate three-dimensional designs like these, filled with diecut images, moveable parts and honeycomb paper details.	"NATIONAL CHIEFS" CIGARS (American, 1901). A complete box of fifty cigars with portraits of America's first twenty-six presidents on the cigar bands. Each president appeared twice in the set except James Knox Polk and Benjamin Harrison. Theodore Roosevelt was elected "national chief" when these cigars were made.
GREETING CARD SAMPLE ALBUM (English, 1881) Thomas De La Rue & Co. of London created this fifty-four page salesman's sample album of birthday cards for their 1881 season. Pages display sets of cards with titles, descriptions and number of card varieties. Image themes include animals, children, fairies, families and women. The card set on the left is called "Omens" and features classical style Priestesses predicting the future. The card set on the right is called "Insect Births." It features caricatures of insects rejoicing over their newly-born offspring and comes with the greeting "Many Happy Returns Of The Day" View more Choice & Rare pages below. ©2006, All Rights Reserved. The John Grossman Collection of Antique Images