Krasniy Oktybro delivers "Krylov Fables" chocolates in three sizes: 20 grams, 18 grams, and 15 grams. We have one of the first sort, two of the second, and one of the third..
1970? KIFO Buvard N. 3 "La Cigale et la Fourmi." Les Fables de la Fontaine. KIFO does cleaning and maintenance work. E 12 LePoivre Thellier á St. Venant (PDC). $5 from Mme Denise Debuigne, Rennes, France, May, '02.
This pleasant blotter in red and green on a white background shows the ant and cicada conversing at the front door. "If the cicada had stopped to think, she would have been able to sing and even dance with the savings realized by having used the range of KIFO products." The bottom of the blotter invites people to look forward to the fourth in the series.
2010? Kid k'nex Story Pals Building Sets. LM and TH, with an extra of TH. Unknown source
"Building fun!" Twelve pieces work together in the usual K'nex system to create a central character in the story. The plastic case (unopened) contains a booklet. Others in the series, still available, include Chicken Little and The Ugly Duckling.
1950? Keychain by Cronenbourg Beers CORSO FLEURI 65. The keychain contains a plastic triangle showing the fable La Fontaine “Le Corbeau & Le Renard.” The verso shows the brewery’s coat of arms, as established in 1664. €5 from Rougemaisonuser on Ebay, Nov., ’20.
Our first keychain!
1950? Keychain advertising Café Jean-Pierre and illustrating GA. 1¼" in diameter. €2.90 from Librairie_retrorepro through Ebay, Sept., '21.
Here is another surprising keychain. The colored circular picture echoes Grandville. We might wonder whether it was printed and how.
1880? Aesop's Fables. Seven unnumbered 5" x 3¼" cards, including one extra, from a larger set with colored illustrations. NY: Kerr & Co. Extra Six-Cord Spool Cotton Manufacturers. $16 (WC) and $12.50 (Fox and Goat) from John Davan through Ebay, Feb., '99 and $15 (WC) from Chuck Norris through Ebay, March, '99. FS for $21.75 from Carolyn Dias, Hanson, MA, Jan., '00, and OF for $22.60 from her in Jan., '01. FK for $32.50 from Linda Winkens at Relics, Sturgis, MI, through Ebay, Feb., '00. 2P for $13.52 from Linda Chromik, North East, PA, through Ebay, Dec., '00. Extra copies of WC, 2P, OF, and FS for $11.53 from Kathy Elliott, Ruskin, FL, through eBay, March, '08.Extra copy of OF from Susan Carlson, Dec., '24.
Very nice stiff cards with the full text of the fable--and lots of advertising--on the back. The special character of these cards lies in the way the artist integrates advertisement and fable. Thus the crane stands on a spool of Kerr thread to remove a spool of Kerr thread from the wolf's mouth. The "well" into which the goat looks down on the fox is the core of a column of Kerr thread-spools. In FK, the torso of each frog is a spool of thread! In FS, the stork dips his bill down not into a vase but into the core of three stacked spools of thread. In OF's marsh, the two frogs perch on spools as though they were innertubes or life-savers. The body of the iron pot is made up of two spools in 2P; the handle with a face--and a spool cap--can be hard to read. The cards are generally bright and clean, though the extra Norris copy of WC is slightly worn and soiled. Several cards are stamped on the picture side by retail dealers, all curiously from either Massachusetts or New Hampshire.
1925? The Aesop Mantel in the Great Room at Kenmore, Fredericksburg, Va. Postcard published for the Kenmore Association by R. A. Kishpaugh, Fredericksburg, VA. Brooklyn, NY: The Albertype Co. $2.50 from Mike Beckert, Raymondville, TX, through Ebay, Dec., '99.
This darkened card has suffered some water damage at one edge. Elsewhere in this site you can see more recent views of the Kenmore mantel/chimneypiece.
Over a mantel in the dining room of Kenmore, the estate of George Washington's sister Betty and Fielding Lewis, is a chimney piece known as "The Aesop's Fable" mantelpiece or chimneypiece. A booklet, postcard, photos, and brochures, gifts of Margaret Carlson Lytton, Nov., '92 and April, '97, present the delightful plaster work, done by a stucco worker whose identity is one of the great questions of American design history. Further, professional photographer Dan Fitzpatrick has taken some high-density photographs to help in investigating the visual history of the overmantel's motifs. Click on any picture below to see it in larger format.
1900? 21 out of a series of 24 cards presenting fables of La Fontaine in an oriental style with French text of the fable on the verso. "Elixir De Kempenaar." Druk J.E. Goossens, Brussels. €16 each from Albert van den Bosch, December, '22.
These cards, except for the change of language, are like the Kempenaar Dutch oriental cards of Series C. Like them, these cards are smaller versions in the style of the Bon Marché Oriental series. While those Bon Marché cards are 4" x 5½", these are 3¼" x 4 7/8". The cards are numbered "1" through "24" in "Serié C" on the bottom of the verso. "Elixir De Kempenaar" is on both sides of each card. The verso of each also has "Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels," and the text of its fable. These cards add an oval in the lower left or right of the picture side: apparently a man with a pitchfork and a seated woman are both drinking Elixir De Kempenaar. The border of each card has its own intricate oriental pattern. Now to find the last three in the series!
1900? Two cards from a series of 12 each presenting La Fontaine fables in an oriental style. Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels."
These are 3¼" x 4 7/8". Like those in other Kempenaar series, they add an oval in the lower left: apparently a man with a pitchfork and a seated woman are both drinking Elixir De Kempenaar. The border of each card has its own intricate pattern. The cards of this "B" series are numbered "6" (Wagoneer in Mud) and "7" (TMCM) in the lower right of the picture side. "Elixir De Kempenaar" is on both sides of each card. The verso of each has "Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels," and the text of its fable. These cards, unlike those in Series A, have a differing formats for the boxes for the fable title on the front side. Both of these cards have "Serié B (12 fables) No. 2" on the verso!
1900? Three cards from a series of 12 each presenting La Fontaine fables in an oriental style. Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels." $30 from Dany Wolfs, Roesalare, Belgium, May, '01.
These cards are as beautiful as their larger counterparts. Each the three in this Series A has a counterpart in the Bon Marché Oriental set that I have. While those cards are 4" x 5½", these are 3¼" x 4 7/8". These cards add an oval in the lower left: apparently a man with a pitchfork and a seated woman are both drinking Elixir De Kempenaar. The border of each card has its own intricate golden pattern. The cards of this "A" series are numbered "4" (WC), "9" (FC), and "10" (CJ) in the lower right of the picture side. "Elixir De Kempenaar" is on both sides of each card. The verso of each has "Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels," and the text of its fable. These cards, as opposed to those in the other two French series from Kempenaar, have consistently shaped boxes for the fable title on the front side. All three of these cards have "Serié A (12 fables) No. 1" on the verso!
1900? Five cards from two series of 12 each presenting La Fontaine fables in an oriental style. Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels." $30 for the first three cards from Dany Wolfs, Roesalare, Belgium, May, '01.
These cards are as beautiful as their larger counterparts. Each of the first-set three has a counterpart in the Bon Marché Oriental set that I have. While those cards are 4" x 5½", these are 3¼" x 4 7/8". These cards add an oval in the lower left: apparently a man with a pitchfork and a seated woman are both drinking Elixir De Kempenaar. The border of each card has its own intricate oriental pattern. The cards of the first series are numbered "4" (WC), "9" (FC), and "10" (CJ) in the lower right of the picture side. Those of the second series are "6" (Wagon Driver in Mud) and "7" (TMCM). "Elixir De Kempenaar" is on both sides of each card. The verso of each also has series and number, "Imp. J.E. Goossens, Brussels," and the text of its fable.
1900? 24 out of a series of 24 cards presenting fables of La Fontaine in an oriental style with Dutch text of the fable on the verso. "Elixir De Kempenaar." Druk J.E. Goossens, Brussels.
Like the Kempenaar French oriental cards, these cards are smaller versions in the style of the Bon Marché Oriental series. While those cards are 4" x 5½", these are 3¼" x 4 7/8". The cards are numbered "1" through "24" in "Reeks C" on the bottom of the verso. "Elixir De Kempenaar" is on both sides of each card. The picture side includes a small cameo of a couple enjoying the elixir. The verso of each also "Druk J.E. Goossens, Brussels," and the text of its fable. Like the French oriental cards, these cards are as beautiful as their larger counterparts. These cards add an oval in the lower left or right: apparently a man with a pitchfork and a seated woman are both drinking Elixir De Kempenaar. The border of each card has its own intricate oriental pattern. Somehow I have managed to pull together a complete set of 24!
1900? 12 out of a series of 12 cards presenting fables of La Fontaine in an oriental style with Dutch text of the fable on the verso. "Elixir De Kempenaar." Druk J.E. Goossens, Brussels. The final three for €16 each from Albert van den Bosch, Dec., '22.
Like the Kempenaar French oriental cards, these cards are smaller versions in the style of the Bon Marché Oriental series. While those cards are 4" x 5½", these are 3¼" x 4 7/8". Nine of the cards are numbered on the front; there are also strange numbers on the verso. On the front, there are clear numbers for 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, and 12. Numbers on the verso of the other three help to fit them in as 4, 6, and 9, respectively. Fully eight have "Reeks B (12 Fabelen) No. 2"! How can eight different cards be numbered "2"? Two of them have a strikethrough through the "2" and a number written that corresponds to the number on the front of the card. Albert has graciously helped me to find my way in this confusing group!
