Do you remember the spice cupboard in your grandmother's kitchen, with its row of little boxes and tins that never seemed to change?
Old spice tins, pantry boxes and product cans were made to be used up and thrown away, which is exactly why the ones that survived are such fun to find. Their graphics, addresses and prices tell you a surprising amount about when and where they were sold. Here's how to read them, how to spot a reproduction and how to look after the ones you bring home.
We have 4 vintage advertising tins and spice boxes in the shop right now, starting at $5.
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What advertising tins are
An advertising tin is any metal container that carried a company's name and artwork along with its product: spices, baking powder, coffee, tobacco, shoe polish, talc, typewriter ribbons, pellets and much more. The container was the advertisement. A bright tin on a store shelf, and later on a kitchen shelf, kept the brand in front of the customer every day.
Not every old "tin" is all metal. Many small spice containers had a cardboard body with metal tops and bottoms, and plenty of spices came in plain cardboard boxes. Collectors gather all of them, so it's worth knowing which one you're holding.
When and where they were made
Early tins usually wore paper labels, because printing directly on metal was hard to do well. Offset lithography, developed in the 1870s and patented in 1875, solved that problem. Ink went from the litho stone onto a cardboard (later rubber) cylinder and then onto the tin, which made colorful printed tins practical. From the late 1800s through the mid 1900s, lithographed tins were everywhere, from tobacco and coffee to cosmetics and household goods.
Over the second half of the 20th century, many products moved to plastic, glass and paperboard, and the classic printed tin became less common. That's part of why mid-century cans, like a shoe-care can or a pellet tin, now have collectors of their own.
Makers, brands and marks
The most useful marks on a tin are usually the company name and address printed on the label. Big national brands like McCormick are well documented, which makes their packaging easier to research. Smaller regional brands, such as a grocer's house brand from one city, can be harder to trace but are often the more unusual find. Some tins also carry the name of the can company that made the container, usually in tiny print near a seam or on the bottom.
How to date a tin or box
- Postal zones and ZIP codes: the Post Office introduced zone numbers for large cities in 1943 (an address like "Los Angeles 58, California"), and five-digit ZIP codes arrived on July 1, 1963. A zone number points to roughly 1943 to the early 1960s; a ZIP code means 1963 or later.
- State abbreviations: the two-letter state abbreviations we use now (OH, NY, CA) were issued in October 1963. Older packaging spells the state out or uses longer abbreviations like "Calif."
- Printed prices: a price printed right on the label, like 15 cents, is a nice clue to era, and buyers love it.
- Graphics and type: lettering styles, logos and artwork changed over the years. Comparing a piece to dated examples of the same brand is one of the best ways to narrow it down.
- Construction: paper label or printed metal, cardboard body or all tin, screw cap, pry lid or hinged flap. Each tells you something about how and when it was made.
- Trademark records: a brand name's trademark filing date gives you an earliest likely date for packaging that carries it.
Reproductions and vintage-style tins
Vintage-look tins are made in big numbers for home decor, and many of them are lovely in their own right. The trick is simply knowing what you have. Things to look for:
- Too-perfect printing: very crisp, high-resolution artwork with even color across the whole surface.
- Printed "age": rust, scratches or wear that's part of the printed design rather than real damage to the metal.
- Size and purpose: a large decorative canister with a candy or general store label may never have held the product named on it.
- Modern details: barcodes, website addresses or a country of origin that doesn't fit the brand's history.
Real wear tends to show up where hands and shelves touched a tin: rims, edges, lids and bare metal seams, which darken or rust. When in doubt, we say so in a listing rather than guess.
See it in person: advertising tins in the shop
Real advertising tins and spice boxes, plus one honest look-alike. Each one is a single piece, so when it's gone, it's gone.
If old advertising is your thing, our guide to collecting vintage advertising ashtrays covers another place companies loved to put their names.
Caring for old tins and boxes
- Dust with a soft, dry brush or cloth. Lithographed surfaces scratch and lift easily.
- Never soak a tin or run it through the dishwasher. Water gets into seams and under lids and starts rust.
- Keep cardboard boxes and paper labels dry and out of direct sun, which fades the colors fast.
- Display empty tins as decor only, not for food.
For more, see our guide to cleaning and caring for vintage finds.
Advertising tins in the shop
Our Sudan Brand celery seed tin comes from Wesco Foods Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio, with bold yellow graphics and a cardboard body with metal top and bottom lids.
The McCormick whole mustard seed spice box is cardboard, not tin, in classic red, white and blue with its original 15-cent price printed on the label.
The Shu-Mak-Up shoe conditioner can from Los Angeles has stiletto heels, atomic starbursts and a pre-ZIP-code postal zone address that helps date it to about the late 1950s or early 1960s.
The little Crosman Super Pells .22 caliber pellet tin carries a red bullseye target and the Crosman Arms Co., Fairport, New York address.
And for the honest look-alike, our set of three vintage-style metal tins has marshmallow, coconut and confections labels. They're decorative tins made to look old, not antique advertising tins, and they make a sweet stack on a kitchen shelf. Every piece is the only one we have.
Keep browsing:
Trinkets & oddities →Vintage kitchen & dining →Treasures under $10 →
Keep reading: Collecting Vintage Advertising Ashtrays · Vintage Apothecary and Bitters Bottles · Vintage vs. Antique vs. Retro
What tin or spice box from your family's kitchen do you still remember? Tell us in the comments. We'd love to hear about it.