2 Furniture and Kitchenware "Designs and Pictures for Slate Drawing" Trade Cards for businesses in Mount Vernon, NY

Slate drawing card featuring furniture and domestic objects for children to copy on slate (chalkboard) tablets. A great collection, including a table, chair, bench, knife, scissors, etc. From a series of advertising novelty/trade cards printed by B. McNally in Newark, NJ. Advertises four businesses in Mount Vernon, NY: James Barker & Son Wood & Coal Dealers; C. B. B. Crombie Fancy & Staple Groceries; John F. Jarvis, Jeweler; Burr, Davis & Son. Furnishing Undertakers (offering "the most modern improvements and styles in Corpse Preservers"). Approx. 5.5 x 4 inches. Very Good condition with faint tidemark, light general soil and handling wear.Copying images on slate tablets was a popular method for teaching drawing in the classroom. Children would progress from basic lines and shapes, to representational forms in outline, objects in perspective, and eventually rendering shading in animals and organic subjects. Because the method didn't require the expense of extra paper or supplies, it was also an economical amusement at home. Slate drawing cards and booklets were welcome forms of advertising, providing an economical means of amusement for children that ensured their longevity amongst customers.