'In town and country there are over 18,000 branches of the Post Office Savings Bank' - this poster was designed by Edward P. Lancaster (1911-1954) and was printed by the Clunbury Press, Berkhamsted for Her Majesty's Stationary Office. Posters with the same strap-line and a similar design can be found in the Imperial War Museum's archives - though I can't find any other examples of this design by Lancaster. The piece is likely to date to the 1930s/early '40s. 

 

It's a wonderfully striking design that's presented in a lovely, warm colour-way. The lamppost / tree trunk bask in a yellow glow from the sun and the tree trunk divides the town and the country scenes. The poster is printed on a fairly coarse / matt paper-stock typical of the period. The original fold-lines are faintly visible though it's clearly been framed professionally and displays very well. The brown wood frame is obviously later, but compliments a poster of this period nicely. 

 

Pieces of ephemera like this were never really meant to be kept; they'd have been pasted, pinned or taped up in shop windows and on notice boards etc - survivors are scarce and this example is particularly well preserved and is a fantastic piece of original vintage decor. 

 

The poster measures 81.5cm high x 56cm wide

 

S/N: #1262