Drink Coca-Cola 5 cents, an anonymous advertisement from the 1890s, places a fashionably dressed young woman at the centre of an unusually sumptuous commercial composition. Holding a glass of Coca-Cola with poised delicacy, she emerges from a deep purple setting enriched with roses, foliage and ornamental borders. Warm red and yellow accents stand sharply against the cooler background, while the prominent instruction and price — “Drink Coca-Cola 5¢” — give the design an immediate clarity beneath its decorative abundance.

Produced while illustrated posters and signs were becoming increasingly central to commercial branding, the advertisement belongs to an early chapter in Coca-Cola’s public identity. The five-cent price is not incidental small print but part of the principal message: the drink is presented as readily affordable, even as the pearls, flowers and elegant costume lend it an air of refinement. This union of direct salesmanship and polished illustration is characteristic of late nineteenth-century advertising, when a simple notice could be transformed into an elaborate piece of popular visual culture.

A closer look

The figure’s pale face and hands are picked out against the dark ground, directing attention towards both her expression and the glass she holds. Her richly textured green dress introduces one of the composition’s strongest colour notes. Fine lace at the sleeve, tiny highlights on her pearls and carefully arranged curls reward closer inspection, lending the model the finish of a society portrait while keeping the advertised drink clearly in view. Reflections traced around the glass make it a small but distinct focal point.

Floral and graphic elements frame this central gesture. At the upper right, a vase of roses provides soft, natural forms beside a decorative gold enclosure around the Coca-Cola name. Green foliage on the opposite side helps balance the arrangement, while the surrounding purple field acts almost like theatrical drapery, intensifying the brighter foreground colours. Although the composition is layered to suggest depth, its symmetry and firm contours preserve the rapid legibility required of an advertisement.

Near the bottom, a folded page bearing promotional text adds another tier of communication beneath the figure. Rather than leaving typography separate from the illustration, the design distributes written messages through an ornamental structure of borders, panels and overlapping objects. The eye consequently moves from slogan to figure, from figure to glass, and finally to the lower printed material. Even amid the lace, petals and gilded details, the commercial hierarchy remains unmistakable.

Context and significance

By the 1890s, Coca-Cola was still a relatively young beverage, and imagery of this kind helped turn a named product into a recognisable public presence. The advertisement does more than announce availability: it constructs an entire visual atmosphere around the drink. The model’s fashionable appearance makes Coca-Cola seem socially polished, while the conspicuous price keeps the message accessible to a broad audience. Elegance and economy are made to coexist within the same frame.

The anonymous design also records a formative moment in modern advertising, before photography came to dominate much commercial imagery. Its persuasive force lies in illustration, ornament and typography working together: the woman attracts attention, the decorative setting holds it, and the short imperative delivers the message. What begins as a five-cent price notice thus becomes a richly staged example of how late Victorian graphic culture gave everyday products a distinctive visual personality.

Choosing the right size and finish

Artwork can feel intimate at smaller sizes and dramatically more architectural at larger ones. Use the room preview, model image and size guide to see how the proportions and scale will work in your space.

If you need an exact size, specialist framing or help planning a larger display, ask our workshop for advice.

The model in the listing images is holding the 18x24in (45x60cm) version of this art print.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, or one considered visual detail. See examples of personalised artwork.

Choose Original to retain the colour and character of the source artwork, or Aged for a warmer, more antique appearance. See examples of our Aged artwork.

Every piece is produced to archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte art paper. Choose an art print, framed art print or framed canvas using the finish options above.

Framed art prints use crystal-clear optical acrylic for excellent clarity, lower weight and safer delivery than glass. Each piece arrives professionally framed and ready to hang.

Selected artworks can be produced at statement sizes up to 3 metres (10ft). Custom sizing and specialist framing are also available. If the exact option you need is not listed, contact our workshop.

This artwork is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The work is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present an art print without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas art and explore the differences between my different finishes.