For sale is a 1940s OVALTINE TABLETS TIN from the A. Wander Limited, London, England. This sample size was sold by druggists as a “tonic food beverage”. The cylindrical tin an embossed cap with the Ovaltine script and most of its original paper label. This tin measures about 2 1/2 inches tall by 1 1/2 inches diameter. This lithographic tin cover advises that “Ovaltine Tablets for Eating”. A great collectible advertising tin.
Ovaltine was developed in Bern, Switzerland, where it is known by its original name, Ovomaltine (from ovum, Latin for “egg”, and malt, which were originally its main ingredients). In 1909, Ovomaltine was exported to Britain. A misspelling of the name on the trademark registration application led to the name being shortened to Ovaltine in English-speaking markets. Originally advertised as consisting solely of “malt, milk, eggs, flavored with cocoa”, the formulation has changed over the decades, and today several formulations are sold in different parts of the world. The U.S. children’s radio series Little Orphan Annie (1931–1940) and Captain Midnight (1938–1949), and the subsequent Captain Midnight TV series (1954–1956), were sponsored by Ovaltine.
