Name/Title
Mechanical BankDescription
This is a savings bank made from metal. It depicts Jonah being thrown by a sailor into the whale's mouth. The main colors are yellow, red and black. You put a coin on Jonah and it gets into the whales mouth. It is about 9" in length. The coin is placed on Jonah's head, there is a resting place, then you press down on a lever in the boat, and the sailor tilts the coin into the whale's mouth. This one was repainted because the original colors on the base were standard. All four sides were originally maroon with gold lettering.
The bank was patented by Peter Adams in 1890, and it was manufactured by the Shephard Hardware Company of Buffalo, NY. Check out the link below to see the patent and a more complete story.