Salesman sample cuspidor – spittoon marked Cuspidors Made By Ireland & Matthews Mfg Co Detroit Mich. It is made of brass. History, per online sources: In the late 1800s,Ireland & Matthews Manufacturing Company was one of the largest spittoon makers in the world. They manufactured brass, copper and nickel cuspidors. One advertisement read: “You Touch a Man’s Office Pride. The minute you mention BRASS CUSPIDORS, for it’s the bright, classy, sanitary conveniences about his office that bespeak character. A good window display will pull buyers. Better still, your city solicitors will find easy sales. Our No. 19 (spittoon) is an honest value, an honest weight, perfectly made. Send for our catalog. 30 styles and sizes.” ( The advertisement pictured is not included in the sale. ) The company, like numerous others in Detroit, later became an automotive supplier operating as I & M Auto Specialities. However, its Quality brand cuspidors were still on the market in 1925. As an aside, the advertisement may a knock off of a Woodbury Facial Soap advertising campaign. In 1911, J Walter Thompson repositioned Woodbury’s Facial Soap using the slogan: A Skin You Love to Touch. Here’s the story: “The real breakthrough for Woodbury’s Facial Soap, Lansdowne, and J. Walter Thompson came in 1911, with ads using the slogan ‘A Skin You Love to Touch’. The phrase appeared over gauzily romantic paintings of elegant young ladies, happily receiving the admiring attention of dashing young gentlemen. Mass circulation magazines like the Ladies’ Home Journal ran these ads regularly. Sales soared in the following decade. Tame as it may now seem, several historians of advertising have called the ‘Skin You Love to Touch’ campaign the first to use sex appeal in modern advertising.” The Woodbury Company was purchased by the Andrew Jergens Company in 1901. About 2 x 2 5/8 x 2 5/8 inches
Weight: 0.1 LB
Measurement: 2 x 2.625 IN
Depth: 2.625
Condition report:
Excellent condition. No dents or dings.
Share this lot:
