22. May 2023

This German-language advertisement booklet from our collection is by itself a bit of a conundrum, but also reminds us of a puzzling episode that happened at the hotel during the Battle of Shanghai in 1937.

18. April 2022

While there is some debate over what event exactly marked the end of the American Indian Wars, it is commonly considered to have been the Battle of Wounded Knee in December 1890. The same year the US Census Bureau broadcast the closure of the Frontier, meaning that in the West there remained no more apparent tracts of land without settlers. What we do know for sure is that almost exactly 13 years later, on a rather windy December morning in 1903, the brothers Wright launched the first...

23. September 2019

"Made in Austria" by Julius Meister & Co., Vienna. The company was active from 1920 to 2012 and together with US firm Ronson represented the oldest lighter manufacturer in the world. The brand name was purchased in 2013 by the Japanese company Windmill and together with its Austrian association continues to enjoy widespread brand awareness in the Chinese market. Depicted with a 1930's cigarette trade card featuring a "fit Spanish beauty". Second picture shows a Chinese Tmall store that...