Up for bid on eBay is a circa 1899 three-part set of the "Primary Language Series," a large format set of posters and teaching instructions
, which would have been hung from an easel and flipped through by teachers in a Victorian schoolhouse setting to supplement a course of instruction in nature study, history, geography, literature, and more.
"We have seen pieces like this taken apart and sold framed page by page, as the lithography, calligraphy, and artistry as of such high quality throughout this piece," says the seller. "This features remarkable and historically important illustrations of fairy tales such as Cinderella, Native American culture, the natural world of flowers, and fauna, historical figures like George Washington, the cotton industry in the antebellum South, and so much more. This is a very rare piece--we haven't ever seen another in condition like this, or with three from the series--and has great appeal for collectors of history, Americana, Victorian culture, educational and workplace ephemera, and more."
According to the listing, the poster was created by Alice Woodworth Cooley, who was responsible for much of the American public school primary curriculum in the U.S. in the late 19th century.
"This provides a truly colorful and hard to find window into the past," the seller adds.
