Snapshots of the Past

Kohle ist Brot – Vintage Wall Art

Kohle ist Brot, 1918 — vintage poster
Kohle ist Brot, 1918. Vintage poster from the World War I collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Few images capture their era like this vintage poster of Kohle ist Brot. Sourced directly from the Library of Congress, it represents an authentic piece of documented history.

The framed print arrives ready to hang; the unframed option suits custom framing. It brings character to any room and makes a memorable gift. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Since 2001, Snapshots of the Past has shipped historic prints to tens of thousands of customers around the world.

Kohle ist Brot

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Kohle ist Brot," or "Coal is bread," frames fuel as a matter of survival rather than the usual wartime imagery of soldiers and battlefields. Skeletons and a harbor scene make the threat concrete: in 1918 Germany faced acute coal shortages, and coal's role in postwar reparations made it a contested resource. The artist is known only by an unidentified monogram, but the poster's appeal to economic necessity reflects the broader propaganda of the period, which urged workers and the public to treat fuel as a question of life and death.

Created / published1918
Medium1 print (poster) : lithograph color ; 64 x 48 cm.
NotesForms part of: Rehse-Archiv fuumlr Zeitgeschichte und Publizistik. Signed with unidentified monogram. Title from item. · Rehse Archiv fuumlr Zeitgeschichte und Publizistik former owner. DLC
SubjectsWorld War 1914-1918--Aftermath--Germany. World War 1914-1918--Economic & industrial aspects--Germany. Reparations--1910-1920. Skeletons--1910-1920. Harbors--Germany--1910-1920.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Posters: Artist Posters
Original scan4,014 × 5,000 px · prints to 13 × 17 in at 300 dpi
Reference1083_Kohle_ist_Brot_1918

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