The Art of the Market

In the days before advertising and annual reports, the stock certificate projected a company's image of quality to the world through artwork and embellishments that epitomized the times-from the bold engravings of locomotives stamped on the shares of nineteenth-century railroad tycoons, to the sleek Art Deco styling from the early automobile era, to the graphic images for today's high-tech media giants. The Art of the Market presents more than 200 certificates that collectively render America's social and economic history through wars and peace, panics and prosperity. Each certificate is fully analyzed in artistic terms, while the lively text offers a compelling historic background on the capitalist mosaic.

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All Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review:
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Unique and well-executed collection of stock certificates, 2008-04-27
The Art of the Market is a unique book that recreates the visual impressions that companies wanted to communicate to the public and shareholders. I especially like the presentation of the whole certificates with detailed enlargements. Shares in certificate form are disappearing so it only through books like this we able to connect with the first 200 years of American business. It's not a substitute for a history of American commerce but a valuable supplement, and for the art it is a worthy book in its own way.


1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

A great coffee table book, 2000-07-18
This book is an excellent reminder of a time when stocks meant more; when stock was something tangible you held vice keystrokes gone in the blink of an eye or memory stored on your computer. In the era of online trading, art such as this is sorely missed. The commentary is not particularly deep, however the art and the history is, for lack of a better word, neat. I think this book is well suited for the coffee table and a nice reminder of how things were "back then."


13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

Great business history, 2000-05-11
I received this book as a gift, and was struck at first by its amazing "look"--it has top-notch graphics. The individual stock certificates are remarkable, and the book's authors make these images come to life as symbols of American business. The engraving of the certificates is treated as a vanishing art form, and this collection offers a reminder of just what is being lost as the market becomes more and more "virtual." At a time when more Americans own stock than ever before--and almost none of them, as the authors point out, have ever seen a stock certificate--this book represents nothing less than a hidden history of an American institution. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the stock market, but also to anyone interested in the history of American business and its influence on our culture.


7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

Fantastic book for scripophily!, 2000-04-23
Wonderfully illustrated book showing the true definition of financial art. Beautiful full-color illustrations of stock certificates. Best part of the book is the price. Very affordable (a bargain for the art!)


14 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

A book where research of companies is at a minimum, 1999-12-26
I received this book for Christmas and just spent ten minutes laughing at the history of Xerox. The authors called the company's beginnings as the Harold company, then changed its name to the Harold Xerox Company. The original company's name was the Haloid Company, not the Harold Company. In my ten minutes of reading there was 4 more errors of company names or historical facts of the stock certificates. I did not read the "history" portion but feel if the authors can't get the histories of Xerox, Exxon, Playboy, Admiral, etc correct, why bother....The stock certificates are admirable, though

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