242

1915 Buffalo Brewing Co. Tray San Francisco Expo

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:200.00 USD Estimated At:400.00 - 800.00 USD
1915 Buffalo Brewing Co. Tray San Francisco Expo
Featured in this lot is a 1915 Buffalo Brewing Co. 12" Tray, from the 1915 San Francisco Exposition, pre-Prohibition. The tray was made by the Kaufmann & Strauss sign company which was among the most prominent industries at the time. The Kaufmann & Strauss portfolio of work included tip trays and serving trays for breweries. The Panama–Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California, celebrating the opening of the Panama Canal, but it was widely seen in the city as an opportunity to showcase its recovery from the catastrophic 1906 earthquake which saw over 80% of the city destroyed and is remembered for being the deadliest earthquake in the history of the United States. Text on the serving tray reads, "Compliments Buffalo Brewing Co. Sacramento, California" on decorative ribbon illustrations along the inside of the rim, "San Francisco Exposition 1915. The Nations Paying Homage To San Francisco" text is written on concrete steps and illustrated with the "nations" being portrayed by young girls in native attire from 14 different nations. The girls are bearing gifts to "San Francisco" who is portrayed as a young woman attired in a Spanish themed dress which reflects San Francisco's colonial Spanish foundation. "San Francisco" is seated in an ancient stone throne room surrounded by Greek-styled stone colonnades. Directly behind her is an illustration of naval fleets underway with flags unfurled with the text, "Through The Panama Canal To The Golden Gate". On the bottom inside crease is stamped Kaufmann & Strauss Co. NY, 1837. This tray is in very nice condition as the colors are still vibrant. There is a bit of crazing and scratches from normal use and aging with paint scuffing noted to the rim, but no other obvious marring observed. Measures 12" diameter approximately.*