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Antique circa 1900 “The Black Hand” Vinegar Valentine Chromolithograph
Original-era American comic print featuring a colorful caricature of a cigar-smoking gentleman wearing a blue suit and bowler hat, accompanied by a black hand illustration and a satirical four-line poem.
This design is documented by the Italian American Museum as a “Black Hand Lithograph, circa 1900.” An antique print dealer also identifies the same title as a circa 1900 vinegar valentine, a type of humorous or insulting printed greeting popular during the Victorian and Edwardian periods.
The illustration references the notorious Black Hand extortion phenomenon in early American history.
Printed “MADE IN U.S.A.” near the bottom. Small printed artist’s monogram visible near the figure; artist not conclusively identified.
Condition: Antique condition with multiple original folds, significant paper loss at the upper left corner, edge wear, small tears, age-related yellowing, staining and handwritten markings. Faint reddish hand impressions and pencil writing are visible on the reverse. Colors remain attractive. Unrestored.
Approximate date: Circa 1900.
Please carefully examine all photographs for the exact condition. Sold as pictured.
Ships carefully protected from Denmark with tracking.
