WHAT: A large two-sheet poster advertising the play โLa Dame aux Cameliasโ brought $11,875 early this month at Swann Galleries in New York and measures, when assembled, 81-inches high by almost 30-inches wide.
MORE: A combination of famous names makes the poster iconic. The play by Alexandre Dumas was a favorite role for Sarah Bernhardt.
Paris-based Czech artist Alphonse Mucha designed this version for an 1896 revival starring the actress.
Paris printer F. Champenois, a firm celebrated for Art Nouveau lithography, completes the constellation. The poster is considered a masterpiece of lithography and art nouveau design.
SMART COLLECTORS KNOW: Large antique theater, advertising and (later) movie posters were printed in two or three sheets that were assembled when pasted onto marquees or surfaces.
HOT TIP: The heyday of collectible advertising posters was the 1880s through the turn of the century, and they have been highly collectible since the beginning.
BOTTOM LINE: Prices on original posters in good condition have outpaced most investments. Originally slapped onto outdoor surfaces, small numbers survive intact.
You donโt have to be a one-percenter to enjoy the effect: Today, many turn to contemporary print versions. Giclee prints, especially, deliver facsimiles that are very good.
