This was our first "Christmas Card of the Day" on the 29th of November, which this year was the date of Advent. So we thought that was good date to change over and start celebrating Christmas.
It was issued by Nestle which you may not realise started out in 1905, when the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company and Farine Lactee Henri Nestle merged. Both these companies had been founded in the mid 1860s. It is one card from a set which is called ‘British Birds’, and though it is a card, it has another purpose, as it is actually a “candle ring card”, or a "candle collar" which is a good hint to their usage, but to find out more, you must read on. nd it`s no use looking in the Society Trade Indexes because we cannot include everything, so many of these die cut items have been omitted. However the information has been recorded and one day we hope to digitise everything on a site which is available for all collectors to view. We are indebted to Patrick Marks, collector of much advertising and trade ephemera, including these cards, who has written us the following special piece, and even included scans of cards and advertising materials. |
In Victorian times homes were lit by candles, from a few feeble flickers in the poorest households to elaborate chandeliers of hundreds of candles in palaces. Society had been dependent upon this means of lighting for hundreds if not thousands of years. It was a system of lighting with its risks being a naked flame, but until the mid 19 th century alternatives such as gas and then electricity were not available or affordable to the bulk of society.
For those who could afford lots of candles an industry grew up in providing receptacles to hold the candles, namely candlesticks. We still use them today though in much diminished numbers.
Firms manufacturing candles such as Price must have manufactured millions every year. One of the drawbacks of candles was the dripping wax which created an unsightly layer especially at the candle base. This is where candle collars come into play. I don’t know who invented them as a way to hide the less attractive wax, but the firm of Nestle decided in the late 19th century to issue a set of six candle collars depicting mainly wild birds with an advert at the base for their milk. The collar would be fitted on the candle through a hole at the base and the bird would cover the unsightly wax.
They were a novel form of advertising, and were actually issued in an envelope – shown here - which shows all the birds.
The front of the envelope - shown here - was even more decorative, and, better still, it shows the candle collar or ring actually in use, which was also an instruction - as you can see, the birds bases would need to have the candle passed through, and then be bent to keep the birds upright. How long these birds survived especially when the candle burnt down bringing the flame closer to the paper is open to debate. Perhaps my cards are a rare survivor of this long forgotten advertising stunt by Nestle, because I’ve never seen them again. And below, to close, are two more of them, enlarged. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * I am sure all our readers will join me in saying many thanks to our author for taking time to write this special insight into these very curious items that I have to say I had never before seen. And if anyone else out there collects items we mention on our website, or cartophilic items we never seem to include, and would like to write a small piece, with or without illustration, please do. |