Vintage cast iron RCA Victor Nipper coin bank. It measures 10" high by 10" wide and weighs 11 pounds.Background:
In the late 1800s, Englishman Francis Barraud wound up a phonograph he’d inherited from his brother’s estate. His brother’s dog, Nipper, moved closer to the machine, cocked his head, and listened to the voice of his late master. The act inspired Barraud to paint the scene of the dog listening to the horn.

Nipper was born in Bristol, England in 1884. There’s argument as to his specific breed – some say he was a Jack Russell Terrier or a Fox Terrier, while others claim he was an American Pit Bull Terrier. Nonetheless, Nipper went on to become one of the most famous advertising icons in history.

Nipper, who got his name because he used to nip at the backs of people’s legs, passed in 1895. In 1899 Barraud tried to sell the painting he’d titled “His Master’s Voice” to cylinder phonograph companies, including the Edison Bell Company. With no takers, Barraud decided to replace the black horn in the painting with a brass one, and visited the Gramophone Company to borrow one. The company liked the painting, and offered to purchase it if Barraud replaced the phonograph with a Berliner disc gramophone.

The portrait became a success, and continued to be used as an advertising image by the Gramophone Company, even after being purchased by The Victor Talking Machine Company. Victor, makers of the Victrola record player, used the image of the dog on millions of records and needle tins. In 1929, RCA Radio Corporation of America purchased Victor, and kept Nipper as its trademark image.

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Very good, some minor wear to the paint from age.