| The picture below shows a larger view of all (4) Small Old Cracker Jack Pop Corn Confection Fancy Miniature Pot Metal Toy Prize Pitchers in this lot. These prizes are not dated but they are believed to be from the 1910s or 1920s. They are not marked, and the maker is unknown. Two of these pitchers are molded together with a stand. They are believed to be an oil and vinegar salad dressing set. The other two are fancy individual pitchers, perhaps for wine or water. All of these have no finish on them, as made. Many of the early pot metal or lead prizes were manufactured by Dowst (Samuel Dowst), or the Tootsietoy Company of Chicago, Illinois, but there were other companies in the United States, and including ones from Japan and Germany prior to World War II as well. Some of these type prizes were made specifically for Cracker Jack, while others were made as small novelties, bought in volume, and used as prizes by The Cracker Jack Company. Pot metal or lead prizes were some of the earliest prizes that were used in Cracker Jack boxes from the 1910s to the late 1940s. Many of these type prizes or novelties were also sold out of old Johnson Smith & Company catalog as well as some other early novelty catalogs, also used in fortune telling sets, and some were also sold and used as board game parts. Many of these can be found factory painted, inked, or with no finish at all. All four of these pitchers for one price! To judge the sizes, the largest pitcher here (right one) measure about 1/4'' x 1'' x 5/16''. They appear to be in mint condition as pictured. |
