Posts tagged with "history"



28. March 2023
Print advertisement for Shanghais Leading Hotels, The China Journal April 1939. From the MOFBA collection.
Like no other, this vibrant ad for the trifecta of Victor Sassoon’s hospitality empire, symbolizes the unprecedented real-estate boom and architectural splendor of Shanghai in the early 1930s. Join us on a journey through the history of the three edifices, all of which still house hotels today.
05. March 2023
A 1936 Chinese print advertisement for Kellogg's Cornflakes and an original vintage Kellogg's Krumbles box. From the MOFBA collection.
Do Chinese people eat cornflakes for breakfast? It turns out, it is as difficult to chew on this question today, as it was in the 1920s. Discover the century-long struggle of Kellogg's in cracking the Chinese market and where the company and its former partners stand today.
27. February 2023
Metal advertising sign for Allenburys (爱兰百利) No. 71 throat pastilles ( 第七十一号喉症糖, 消毒润喉), the models long, rolled back hair, with a section of bangs and the art deco style of the illustration dates it to the mid-1920s. From the MOFBA collection.
This beautiful mid-1920s Art Deco style advertisement sign for Allenburys tells the astonishing story of the once wealthiest foreign family of Old Shanghai. They were highly esteemed, with numerous schools, two streets, an office building, and even a coffee house named after them. Yet, their name has almost been forgotten, if it weren’t for the rare artefacts that sometimes still show up in the antique markets and the few remnants of their legacy strewn across the vanishing old city.
15. February 2023
A 1937 Shanghai Union Brewery Commemorative Booklet. From the MOFBA collection.
This marvelous commemorative booklet from our collection was published on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the celebrated Shanghai Union Brewery. It offers an intriguing testament to Shanghai’s world-famous history of commerce, design, architecture and… tragedy.
06. February 2023
Just what the doctor ordered: 1930s Vitamin Cigarettes by Taifon Tobacco Co. Ltd. - "Second to None". From the MOFBA collection.
30. January 2023
1920s Doan's Ointment advertisement (兜安氏皮膏病新篇) in Foster-McClellan's Chinese customer magazine. Illustration by 叔达. From the MOFBA museum.
A lovely and innocent Chinese girl in 1920s fashion, advertising a skin medication by Foster-McClellan in Shanghai. A check in the historic “List of American firms at Shanghai” by the US consul identifies the company as “importers of patent medicines”. What dark secrets could this fair facade possibly mask?
23. January 2023
A.S. Watson 1916 Chinese Calendar Poster Advertisement by Feng Runzhi. From the MOFBA collection.
Happy Chinese New Year! This rare A.S. Watsons advertisement from our collection not only has a peculiar design around the auspicious character 康 (health), but tells the origin story and evolution of the famous Chinese calendar posters which were in fact pioneered by Watsons in the 1880s together with a second British firm.
16. January 2023
Last week would have been László Hudec’s 130th birthday. In celebration of Shanghai’s most well-known architect, here is a beautiful commemorative advertising booklet from our collection about his Art Deco magnum opus: the Joint Savings Society Building, more famously known as the Park Hotel or “International Hotel” (国际饭店) in Chinese. The edifice, constructed between 1931 to 1934 at 164 Bubbling Well Road (today’s No.170 Nanjing West Road), was named after the Joint Savings...
09. January 2023
A tin advertising for Farbwerke vorm. Meister Lucius & Brüning depicting an imagined scene of a medieval German king meeting a Qing Dynasty emperor. From the MOFBA collection.
"Once upon a time, on a fair and wondrous day, the brave King of the Franks did journey to the fabled land of Cathay. Resplendent in his ermine-trimmed robes, he arrived at the Imperial Palace in the celestial city of Beijing. There, he was greeted with the utmost reverence by the Son of Heaven, the august Emperor of China, who was attired in his finest silks and adorned with glittering jewels. When the two monarchs took their seats of honor, a hush fell over the court, for all knew that this...
02. January 2023
1930s Honey Soap vintage Chinese advertising poster featuring Li Lili. From the MOFBA collection.
As gorgeous and innocent looking this “Honey Soap” advertising poster featuring Chinese actress Li Lili is, it actually tells the story of several dark episodes from China’s marketing and entertainment history.

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