[educational toy]
Wind-up ABC picture alphabet in a barrel
Printed in two colors on an oilcloth tape that winds up into the wooden barrel with a little crank. Barrel measures 3 x 2 inches and the 2-inch tape rolls out about 48 inches. An old label on one end of the barrel is mostly gone, leaving no identifying names, though the artist left a little self-portrait in the "X" compartment. Done in the style of McLoughlin Bros. cloth ABC books and with images that reference late 19th century culture and fashion. In Good condition, wear mostly to the first few inches of tape that are faded, puckered, and frayed at the very edge, but the remaining length retains strong detail and the mechanism works well, rolling easily all the way from A to Z.