Antique 1900s - 1930s Flor De Manuel Babies 👶 Gold Embossed Cigar Label

Who Made Flor de Manuel Cigars? 👶 Flor de Manuel Babies Gold Embossed Cigar Box Label, Consolidated Lithographing, Brooklyn

Size: 8 1/2" x 6 1/2" ~ Little to no wear.

Behold this amazing Gold embossed label. A gentleman in a high white collar and dark coat looks out from an oval portrait, ringed with embossed gold coins and bright flowers, with FLOR DE MANUEL arched over him in red and gold, a SUPERIORES ribbon under his portrait and BABIES in big embossed red letters below, all on a deep blue field. A matching MANUEL BABIES strip runs along the bottom, and a blank gold beaded oval sits up in the corner where a factory number could be printed. Most companies at the time used real gold flakes in the embossing.

🏷️ What's Printed on It

• FLOR DE MANUEL
• SUPERIORES
• BABIES
• MANUEL BABIES, on the bottom strip
• REG. IN U.S. PAT. OFF., in tiny type
• CONSOLIDATED LITHOGRAPHING CORPORATION BROOKLYN N.Y., the printer's line

The back is blank, with the embossing pressed right through.

📻 A Brand on the Radio

This was a trendy brand and was one of the first to use the radio as an advertising medium, marking a significant shift in marketing history. By 1931 radio was a hot fad, and Flor de Manuel was right there with Phillies, White Owl, Robt. Burns, Cremo, La Palina and Dutch Masters sponsoring radio programs, mostly music and comedy-variety shows. Other Flor de Manuel labels carry the name of J.C. Winter & Co., which in 1920 ran 32 cigar factories in Pennsylvania, large and small.

🖨️ Consolidated Lithographing

The printer's line belongs to the Consolidated Lithographing Corporation of Brooklyn, which took over the American Lithographic Company's cigar label business in 1930 and kept printing cigar labels right on into the 1980s.

🖼️ Display

Cigar labels show you what antique advertising is all about with the wonderful graphics that lithography and embossing provide that modern printing can't reproduce. Unfortunately, this was mostly a lost art after the 1920s. Museums and art institutes have galleries dedicated to them, and collectors are seeking out more and more of them to preserve their history. Once the limited supply for sale is gone and on display with collectors or in galleries, they will be challenging to acquire.

My pictures seriously don't do it justice. These labels had to be done on heavy paper stock, which kept them vibrant and new-looking for a long time. Imagine hanging this antique advertising on your wall as home decor in any room!

Most of these artists were very good but desperate for work during that era. They got paid very little and received no recognition for their work. Unfortunately, the majority of these artists will remain unknown, but we can keep their art alive forever.