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Fantastic antique Improved Order of Red Men (I.O.R.M.) fraternal match safe / vesta case, believed to date from approximately the early 1900s to 1920s.
The front features an elaborate raised-metal design reading:
“IMPROVED ORDER OF RED MEN”
with the organization’s historic principles:
CHARITY • FREEDOM • FRIENDSHIP
The detailed imagery includes an eagle, shield, tomahawk/axe, feathered headdress, bow and arrows, figures beside a council fire, and other symbols traditionally associated with the Improved Order of Red Men.
The Improved Order of Red Men was a historic American fraternal organization that adopted that name in 1834. The organization became especially prominent during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, making surviving period pieces like this wonderful examples of early American fraternal memorabilia.
Please note: despite the wording “Red Men,” this is not advertising for Red Man chewing tobacco. It is memorabilia associated with the Improved Order of Red Men fraternal organization.
FEATURES
* Antique Improved Order of Red Men collectible
* I.O.R.M. fraternal memorabilia
* Approximately circa 1900–1920s
* Pocket match safe / vesta case
* Ornate raised-metal front emblem
* “Improved Order of Red Men” lettering
* “Charity – Freedom – Friendship” motto
* Eagle and shield imagery
* Bow, arrows, tomahawk and feathered headdress motifs
* Council fire scene with two figures
* Decorative period construction
* Wonderful early American fraternal collectible
Match safes, also known as vesta cases, were small pocket containers designed to hold friction matches before disposable lighters became commonplace. They were frequently produced as advertising pieces, souvenirs, lodge memorabilia and gentleman’s accessories during the late Victorian and Edwardian periods and into the early 20th century.
fraternal memorabilia, Improved Order of Red Men collectibles, antique match safes, vesta cases, lodge memorabilia, early Americana, antique smoking accessories, gentleman’s accessories, historical societies, antique advertising and early 20th-century collectibles.
It would make an especially unusual gift for a collector of antique smoking accessories, cigar memorabilia, fraternal history or Americana. Displayed alongside antique cigar cutters, match holders, humidors, pipes or other turn-of-the-century gentleman’s accessories, it would make a terrific conversation piece.
CONDITION
Antique pre-owned condition with age-related wear, patina, surface marks, discoloration and oxidation consistent with a piece that may be more than 100 years old. The aged appearance adds considerably to its antique character.
Please carefully review all photographs for exact condition, construction and details. Photos are considered part of the description.
A very interesting survivor from the golden age of American fraternal organizations and a striking piece of early Improved Order of Red Men history.
*does not include matches shown in photo. Requires wood white tipped matches as shown for striker on base to function well.
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