Advertisement has thousands of years history. For example Egyptian papyri, a Chinese bronze plate, wall and rock paintings in Africa and South-America certify this. The bigger part of the population couldn’t read in Europe in the medieval ages, so their attention was attracted for the services and goods by pictures (e.g. trade-signs). The first newspaper advertisements appeared in England in the 18th century. Thomas J. Bratt was the father of the modern advertisement who used Bubbles painting of Sir John Everett Millais for the advertisement of Pears’ Soap. The first advertising agency was founded in Philadelphia in 1842. Ads were already on the radio from the 1920s. Television got the leading rule in advertising from the 1950s. Separate channels were started for advertising and immediate shopping by the appearance of cable television (1980s). Internet gave new perspectives in this field from the 1990s. Of course, there are still many printed advertisements beside these, for example on vehicles, giant placards and leaflets. Original packaging of products is among these also.
Ads on TV, internet and e-mail are spectacular but not touchable. However, ads of „old times”, first of all placards, trade-signs, sandwich-boards (wood, metal, cardboard) are already very valuable and even sought after by collectors. A rarer piece is not only a good investment but a great decorating possibility at home also: hanging on the wall as a picture, standing on the mantelpiece or on a shelf, being a part of a vintage collage, getting a new function (e.g. tray, top of a table) etc. They can be focal points by their sizes or colors.
Ask for help of an interior designer for perfect displaying of your collection.