The Most Beautiful and the Best …
These days, there's a growing trend to highlight ten or even twenty examples of any given topic. This is especially evident on social media. You've surely come across headlines like “The Ten Most Beautiful Cars,” “The Ten Ugliest Sports Cars,” or “The Ten Most Expensive Supercars”; people also love to use the superlative form of the not-so-German word “iconic”—we won't even mention it here.
But, like so many things, this trend isn't new. As early as 40 or more years ago, people were already using selection lists for advertising, as our examples here show. The poster “The Most Beautiful Classic Cars” is at least as old, and it features cars that some people today don't even recognize anymore. Back then, the “Auto + Technik Museum” in Sinsheim used these classic cars to promote a visit to the museum.
The poster “Famous Race Cars” also sought to attract attention with a selection of race cars from 1899 to 1977, while simultaneously promoting the sponsor “banago.” For those unfamiliar with “banago,” it was a chocolate powder that, when mixed with milk, made a drink that was especially popular with children. By the late 1970s, banago was already 50 years old. By the late 1990s, it had disappeared in its original form from the shelves of major retailers, but the drink was later reinvented.
And while we're at it, here's another poster—untitled—that depicts what are probably the most beautiful Alfa Romeos from the postwar era through the 1970s.
P.S. By the way, we came across these posters at the Oldtimer Galerie in Toffen, where you shouldn't just look at the cars in the exhibition hall—you should also check out the walls…
And for all those who haven't planned a visit to Toffen, we've also uploaded the three posters here in higher resolution.
