Vintage Advertising Tins

These days, people of means tend to dismiss canned or “processed” food as something people without access to fresh food eat. But in the late 1800s, food in tins was highly desirable. It was considered much more sanitary, and therefore healthier, than food offered in bins or barrels. That’s when branding became particularly important; customers learned they could expect a certain level of quality from, say, Kellogg’s.

At first, tinplate containers were covered with paper labels, which had a product’s pertinent information and advertising stenciled or printed on them. Machines that could trim and stamp sheets of tin were introduced around 1875, and between 1869 and 1895, manufacturers developed a process that allowed them to use lithography to transfer images directly onto the tin boxes.

Today, lithographed advertising tins are a hugely popular collecting category. Examples of products that were sold in tins range from coffee and tobacco to beverages and snack foods. Companies even sold typewriter ribbons and condoms in specially designed tins.

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