The trademarks in this collection represent some of the finest graphic design to emanate from Britain between the wars. Author John Mendenhall has gathered over 280 trademarks and logos from the archives of the British Library and categorized them by subject. From the carefree exuberance of the twenties to the back-to-work ethic of the thirties, these trademarks reflect the moods and successes of industry prior to World War II and the advent of diversified, multi-national conglomerates.

John Mendenhall is a professor of graphic design and design history at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. Previously he designed computer type fonts at the Computer-based Education Research Laboratory in Urbana, Illinois, and was a graphic designer for the Agency for International Development. Mendenhall received a BFA degree from the University of Illinois in Urbana and an MA from Stanford University. He has taught at several universities and is the author of five books