Bidspirit auction | Picture Gallery Bank

Picture Gallery Bank - Made by Shepard Hardware. Buffalo, New York - Circa 1890. Purchased from Ken Bennett. Found on a dresser in Indiana. In addition to encouraging children to save money, as all mechanical banks do, the Picture Gallery Bank helps children learn the alphabet. As the bank's lever is pushed, all 26 letters (A to Z) appear in sequence in the window on the left. Simultaneously, the numerals 1 through 26 appear in a second window at the top of the bank. Each number correctly corresponds with the appropriate letter. The third window is larger and is found on the right. It contains pictographs that also directly relate to the letters. For example, in its current position, we see that ”B” is the second letter in the alphabet, and it stands for ”Bat”, not a mundane baseball bat, but a scary flying bat. Thus, a child playing with this toy bank can review and reinforce his or her knowledge of the alphabet. This example of the Picture Gallery was found in the late 1980's carefully stored in a dresser drawer in Indiana. At the time, it was praised as an important new discovery. Condition: Pristine Plus Condition.