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Wonderful original antique Roseine laundry washing compound package manufactured by E.W. Gillett, retaining its original contents and appearing never to have been opened.
The outstanding feature is the beautifully colored Roseine trademark graphic showing an owl perched on a yellow crescent moon against an orange sunburst, all set against a rich dark-blue background. The package is marked “5 CENTS A PACKAGE” and dates approximately to the early 20th century, circa 1905–1915.
The front reads:
5 CENTS A PACKAGE
and identifies the manufacturer as:
E.W. GILLETT
CHICAGO · LONDON · TORONTO
U.S.A. · ENG. · CAN.
Importantly, Roseine was not simply a bar of soap. The package specifically states:
“MUST BE USED WITH SOAP”
and promotes the product as:
“Better than Soap Powder”
“Better than Washing Powder”
“Better than Washing Crystal”
with the claim that it “makes one bar of soap do the work of two.”
Another panel provides full household laundry directions and states:
“THIS PACKAGE WILL DO FOUR ORDINARY WASHINGS.”
The instructions call for using one quarter of the package with four ounces of sliced soap in a boiler, followed by detailed washing and rinsing directions. Special instructions are also provided for flannels and delicately colored articles.
One long side carries similar washing instructions printed in German, making this an especially interesting example of early multilingual consumer packaging and suggesting E.W. Gillett was marketing the product to immigrant as well as English-speaking households.
Roseine is documented as a period household brand by the early 1900s. E.W. Gillett was an important North American manufacturer of household and food products with operations associated with Chicago and Toronto and was also known for products including Magic Baking Powder, Royal Yeast Cakes and perfumed lye.
The owl-and-crescent trademark was also used on other E.W. Gillett products and survives on collectible Gillett advertising and bottles.
4 inches tall x 2.75 inches wide x 1.25 inches deep
The package remains unopened with its contents inside and still gives off a noticeable old-fashioned fragrant scent. Because of its age, the contents are not intended for use and the entire piece is being offered solely as an antique advertising and packaging collectible.
An excellent survivor for collectors of antique advertising, soap and laundry memorabilia, general-store merchandise, early household products, lithographed packaging, owl advertising, moon imagery, E.W. Gillett memorabilia, or turn-of-the-century Americana.
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