ULTRAVIOLET RAYS

Tin signs and cans will fade from the ultraviolet rays coming in a window or from a fluorescent light. Plexiglas UF-1 or UF-3 will cover the window and keep the rays away from your collection. There are also plastic sleeves to cover fluorescent tubes.

COCA-COLA SIGN

Q: I have an old Coca-Cola tin sign that is tacked to a wooden frame. On the left side are the words "Relieves Mental & Physical Exhaustion." In the upper right it says "Delightful Summer and Winter Beverage." On the back it says "Kaufmann & Strauss Company NY." Any idea of its date, history and value?

A: Kaufmann & Strauss was a company that made tin signs and advertising trays from 1890 to the early 1930s. It is unusual to find the printed name of a company on the back of a sign; usually the printing is only on one side. Coca-Cola used the picture of a girl in a blue dress sitting at a table on its 1898 calendar and other advertising items. A 20-by-28-inch tin sign is pictured in Petretti's Coca-Cola Collectibles Price Guide, 10th ed., with a value of $15,000. In 1886 John S. Pemberton, a pharmacist in Atlanta, developed Coca-Cola syrup as a patent medicine that was advertised as a cure for headache or "tired feeling." By 1900 it was usually advertised as a soda fountain drink and not as a headache medicine. Your sign, even bent, rusted, and filled with holes, could sell for a few thousand dollars if it's original. Beware. The frame is new and the sign has a surprising number of holes; it's possible it's a copy. The actual sign, not a picture of it, should be seen by an expert to determine the value.

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GEM SAFETY RAZOR

Gem Safety Razor

Q: I need information on a Gem Safety Razor. It has all its pieces and comes in a cylindrical tin with a man holding a razor that says, "Be your own barber."

A: In 1898 Jerry Reichard started the Gem Cutlery Co. in New York and patented the company's first product, the Gem Safety Razor. The razor was so successful that the company changed its name to the Gem Safety Razor Co. in 1900. The company merged with Star and Ever-Ready to become the American Safety Razor Corp. in 1919. Gem razor tins featured a smiling man with his face lathered up who is ready to shave with the razor in his raised right hand. Unlike your tin, most Gem tins were rectangular and hinged and had the man's image on the back and the company name and slogan on the front. Your round tin is rare and probably early. With the tin and complete set, your razor could sell for $300 or more.