An original embossed tin lithographed advertising sign for J.H. Cutter Whisky, distributed by A.P. Hotaling & Co., San Francisco, one of California’s foremost wholesale wine and spirits merchants during the late nineteenth century. Founded by Anson P. Hotaling, the firm supplied saloons and merchants throughout the American West. Following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire, the company’s warehouse famously survived, giving rise to the well-known verse: “If, as they say, God spanked the town for being over frisky, why did He burn the churches down and save Hotaling’s whiskey?”

The sign advertises J.H. Cutter No. 1 Old Bourbon, a Kentucky bourbon distilled by C.P. Moorman of Louisville and bottled for the California market by A.P. Hotaling & Co. Produced during the last quarter of the nineteenth century, it is an early embossed tin lithograph, among the first durable forms of commercial color advertising. The lower border bears the imprint of Pacific Sheet Metal Works, San Francisco, identifying the local manufacturer that produced the sign for A.P. Hotaling & Co., reflecting the city’s emergence as a leading center of commercial sign-making in the American West.

Dimensions: 13.5 × 9.75 in.

Shipping: Free Sacramento pickup. Shipping via FedEx within the continental U.S. for $65 plus 1.5% insurance (unless waived in writing).

Embossed tin lithograph retaining strong original color and excellent display appeal. Extensive age-related craquelure to the original finish throughout, with scattered scratches, isolated areas of oxidation, light edge wear, and minor handling marks consistent with age. The reverse retains its original dark painted surface with expected wear from use and storage.