19th century
Wainwright's Staffordshire Cordial
Image: Kavalkade vor Schloss Heiligenberg by Allbrecht Adam, 1831 . WAINWRIGHT’s STAFFORDSHIRE CORDIAL, AND ROYAL ENGLISH MEDICINE FOR HORSES, WHICH has been given with unprecedented success in the most dangerous stages of the Sleeping or Raging Staggers, Gripes, Colds, Coughs, Fevers, and all disorders originating in colds, or from grazing […]
Read MoreChampion Damiana Wafers
Damiana is a shrub long reputed to have aphrodisiac effects, and is still used in herbal medicine to boost libido. P.N. George sold a variety of products that were despatched with the utmost discretion. As well as the “Rubber Goods” advertised below, there was also a “Male and Female Combined Preventive Appliance,” and if you were having trouble deciding, you […]
Read MoreCrinilene
Image: Whiskerandos, by John Leech, 1854. Courtesy of the John Leech Sketch Archives from Punch LUXURIANT HAIR, WHISKERS, EYEBROWS, &c. THE TESTIMONIALS daily received by Miss DEAN establish the fact that CRINILENE is the only preparation that can be perfectly relied upon in producing those acknowledged orna- ments of manhood in three […]
Read MoreKeating's Cough Lozenges
A 1s 1½d tin contained 50 lozenges, and the recommended dose was one or two lozenges at bedtime and up to 10 during the course of the day. The ingredients were morphine, ipecacuanha, extract of licorice, and sugar, held together by tragacanth gum. . KEATING’S COUGH LOZENGES. “94, Commercial Road, Peckham, July 12, […]
Read MoreTaylor's Anti-Epileptic Medicine
Like other antiepileptic medicines of the time, the Taylors’ remedy contained potassium bromide and ammonium bromide, together with some tincture of iodine. These ingredients were topped up with water to make 12 fl. oz. that went on sale at 2s. 9d. – a good profit on the penny or so that it cost to make. . A […]
Read MoreClarkson's Specific for Bad Legs
Another very long advert today. Thomas Clarkson was a member of the Royal College of Surgeons, but his method of cure, which isn’t named in this ad, was a patent medicine by the name of Clarkson’s Specific for Bad Legs. Initially, Clarkson treated the afflicted in person, but because this often meant they had to find lodgings near his […]
Read MoreBeetham's Corn & Bunion Plaster
It’s interesting that this advert uses the phrase “worth a guinea a box.” This slogan was plastered everywhere in the second half of the 19th century, advertising the famous Beecham’s Pills. Mr Beetham wasn’t necessarily copying his near-namesake, however. The phrase was around before Thomas Beecham adopted it in 1859, so the satisfied customer who is supposed to have […]
Read MoreAlfred's Royal Composition
Image: Portrait of Madame Récamier, by François Pascal Simon Gérard FEMALE ATTRACTION TO obviate the unpleasant sensation experienced by those Ladies who may have SUPERFLUOUS HAIRS growing on the Face or Arms, and to render their persons more lovely and attractive, was the chief motive that […]
Read MoreCuticura Soap and Ointment
Skin “literally on fire”? Then you need Cuticura – or possibly a large bucket of water and a good plastic surgeon. Cuticura originated in the US in 1865 and had reached the UK by 1880. The famous company is, of course, still going strong with a wide range of top-quality skincare and haircare products, as […]
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