1997 "The Fables of Aesop." Eight cards by World's Greatest Minds Ltd, England. Each card has a window opening on a reproduction of a classic fable illustration. The outside of the card, around the window, presents the text of the fable. The inside presents the application. Stories and applications are taken, in slightly edited form, from Croxall. Gift of Maureen Hester from the Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, August, '97. Several extra copies. Click on any card to see a larger image.
1932 Aesop's Fables. W.H. & J. Woods Ltd., Cigarette Manufacturers. Preston. Series of 25. $20 at Noah's Ark, Milwaukee, June, '87. Second set for $13.50 from Colin Fawcett, Wisbech, England, through Ebay, Sept., '01.
This was my first set of cigarette cards. I went on to find a great deal more, including two different renditions of this same set in color, done by Gallaher in 1931 and Anstie in 1934. These cards are in very good condition. The copies here of the earlier colored work are unspectacular. The texts repeat those of the Gallaher original.
2020? Wooden tortoise and hare figures. 3½' x 1¾" (tortoise) and 3¾" x 2¼" (hare). The Wooden Storyteller, Spokane, Washington. Gift of Maureen Hester, Dec., '19.
Beautiful woodworking. Simple figures. Lovely grain. And a great feel in the hand! Aesop lives!
2020? Wooden puzzle featuring characters from LM and TH. Four pieces. Deep inlay. 10" x 10". Characters up to 6". Source unknown.
The woodworker artist has arranged the characters well, with three of them being composites of two pieces of wood and the simpler mouse in the center. I had a puzzle like this as a child and had lost one piece. Oh, the pain of it!
1962 Wooden purse signed by Enid Collins. Titled "Pretty Foxie." 8½" x 11" x 2¾". Cream leather, cream plastic handle, and brass hardware. $37 from Ginny Chenowith, Las Cruces, NM, through Ebay, Sept., '00.
A painted fox with rhinestone eyes sits beneath a bough of purple cabochon grapes. Some of these are missing. Inside the lid is a mirror and "The Original Box Bag by Collins of Texas hand-decorated for You! Copyright 1962 enid collins." The lid has "ec" in the lower right corner. Click on either image for a fuller view of the bag.
1900? Wooden music box with crank, picturing the fox and one other character. Circular crank. 3" x 2.5" x 1.75". Unknown source.
I suspect that I bought this because an overzealous seller advertised it as illustrating a fable. The figure on the left looks to me like the pilgrim Reynard, but I am unsure who the figure on the right might be. I have looked through many Reineke Fuchs illustrations but found nothing similar. Alas, the music no longer plays. The circumference traced by the crank is clear on the top of the box.
1930? Wooden box "Les plus jolies fables de La Fontaine." Six scenes: WC; "Bertrand and Raton"; FC; "Two Mice and an Egg"; TMCM; and FS. 10½: x 7¼". 2" high. $50 from MidIslandMiscellany through Etsy, July, '22.
It is tempting to see this shallow box as made for cigars, but I lean rather toward the theory that it housed a set of six-sided picture blocks. This box is well worn! Two of the scenes are rare choices for a small selection of La Fontaine's fables: "Bertrand and Raton" and "Two Mice and an Egg."
