Need a little inspiration for this weekend’s annual Coney Island Mermaid Parade? The Hagley Library (and J. C. Ayer and Company) has you covered.
This trade card for Ayer’s Hair Vigor featuring a (flock? a pod? what do you call a multitude of mermaids?) and their hapless victims dates to ca.1880-1900. Considering that the product it advertises was composed of cream of tartar, glycerine, lead acetate, caustic soda, and water, I’m going to recommend that you leave it out of your parade preparation plans, no matter how lovely the advertising is. This item is part of the Hagley Library’s Fingerman collection of ephemera (Accession 2009.213). To view more items from this collection online, click here to visit its page in our Digital Archive.