Cigar Box Label, Monument Square Baltimore, Battle Monument, Outer Label, Embossed & Gilded Chromolithograph, NOS, Made in USA, Antique, 1910s

Gold leaf. Embossing. Full color lithography. And it was designed to go on the outside of a cigar box.

This is an original Monument Square outer cigar box label — an antique chromolithograph from circa 1910, produced for the George Schafer – H. C. Pfaff Cigar Company of Baltimore, Maryland. The subject is Monument Square in Baltimore — the Battle Monument, completed in 1825, rising 39 feet at the center of a city that in its peak was home to over 132 cigar factories. This label is both a piece of tobacciana history and a piece of Baltimore history, made in the city it depicts, by a company that was the last cigar maker standing in Baltimore when it was finally acquired in 1963.

Slightly glossy, heavily embossed and gilded. Copies of this label circulate widely — an original in unused NOS condition is a genuine rare find. Age-appropriate yellowing on the reverse only — the face is vivid and pristine. Two available.

Frame it for a study, a library, a bar, a Baltimore-themed space, or as a housewarming gift for anyone with deep Baltimore roots. At 9.25 by 7.0 inches it fits a standard 10x8 frame beautifully.

A wonderful gift for a Baltimore history enthusiast, a tobacciana collector, a cigar aficionado, or anyone who appreciates American city history rendered in extraordinary commercial art.

The Battle Monument was built to honor those who died defending Baltimore during the War of 1812 in September 1814. Designed by Baltimore architect J. Maximilian Godefroy and built between 1815 and 1825, it stands 39 feet tall and was originally topped by an 8-foot, 2,750-pound Carrara marble statue by Antonio Capellano — a female figure representing the City of Baltimore, affectionately known as Lady Baltimore, now in a museum with a concrete replica in her place.

Schafer-Pfaff Cigar Company: H. C. Pfaff started his company in 1890. George Schafer began making cigars by hand in 1896. The two eventually merged and built one of Baltimore's most beloved cigar brands — including Monument Square, Uncle Willies, Fire King, and Clifton Park. In 1929 Schafer bought out Pfaff; in 1963 the company was acquired by T. E. Brooks of Red Lion, Pennsylvania, ending the long tradition of cigar making in Baltimore. At its peak, Baltimore was home to over 132 cigar factories.

• Brand: Monument Square Cigars / George Schafer – H. C. Pfaff Cigar Co., Baltimore, Maryland
• Type: Cigar box outer label
• Made in: Baltimore, Maryland, USA
• Dated: circa 1910
• Dimensions: 9.25" long | 7.0" tall
• Material: Paper, chromolithograph, embossed and gilded
• Condition: New Old Stock (NOS) — unused, mint condition. Age-appropriate yellowing on the reverse only — the face is vivid and pristine. Please review all photos carefully — we cannot accept returns.
• Framing: Fits a standard 10x8 frame — ready to display