24 of the Most Beautiful Ads Ever Made

24 of the Most Beautiful Ads Ever Made

Once upon a time, advertising was art. There was a period when creating amazing advertisements for products–such as cigarettes, soap, food, bicycles, and even cultural events—was a fulfilling form of self-expression for artists. The true golden era (one can call it La Belle Époque) shined from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of World War I.

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12 Funny Ads For Products Mutated Into Something Totally Different

12 Funny Ads For Products Mutated Into Something Totally Different

Ideas in advertising sometimes go crazy. This was the case way back in time, and it always will be. One possibility is when an ad shows us the product as something completely different—like in these twelve vintage ads. The result can be funny or weird (you decide). And don’t hesitate to add your own favorites from this genre in the discussion below!

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12 Temples of American Finance Gone to Waste

12 Temples of American Finance Gone to Waste

In 19th and early 20th century America, fledging banks depended on conveying stability and trust to their customers. That usually meant architecture—and the construction of pint-sized Greek and Roman monuments in towns all over the country.

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26 Stunning Cartoon Backdrops That Deserve To Be Hung on a Wall

26 Stunning Cartoon Backdrops That Deserve To Be Hung on a Wall

Have you ever found yourself watching a cartoon and noticing the illustrations behind the characters? Those backgrounds can often be prettier than the action in the foreground. If only those pesky mice and long-nosed boys would get out of the way! If so, the upcoming Beverly Hills Animation Art Signature Auction is for you.

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10 Cold War Weapons That Terrified U.S. Military Intelligence

10 Cold War Weapons That Terrified U.S. Military Intelligence

When US-Soviet relationships were at their frostiest in the 1980s, there was no telling what sort of exotic threat was about to come roaring through Russia’s Iron Curtain. That’s where the Defense Intelligence Agency came in.

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10 Decaying Giants That Still Guard the Spirit of the Soviet Union

10 Decaying Giants That Still Guard the Spirit of the Soviet Union

When the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ceased to exist in 1991, propaganda art began to disappear, and once-grand social realist murals, reliefs and all manner of mosaics have dwindled. But in the Republic of Kazakhstan, locals still walk the streets under the watchful eyes of five-story tall cosmonauts, workers, engineers, scientists.

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27 Unearthly Objects Made Of Stars

27 Unearthly Objects Made Of Stars

A few days ago, we admired the cosmic beauty hidden inside of dull-looking meteorites. Scientists crack open these space rocks in the name of research, plenty of other meteorite enthusiasts do it for another reason—to make things out of what’s inside. What sort of things? You name it.

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30 Starry Wonders Hiding Inside of Dull Meteorites

30 Starry Wonders Hiding Inside of Dull Meteorites

A few weeks ago, Russian divers extracted a 1,250-pound chunk of the infamous Chelyabinsk meteorite from a lake where it landed on February 15. The massive space stone ended up cracking into three pieces—and though scientists may have cursed the clumsy divers, I was interested in something else: What was inside the rock?

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6 Buildings That Are Hiding in Plain Sight

6 Buildings That Are Hiding in Plain Sight

We’re used to hearing about military camouflage, which has been used to hide everything from ships to whole towns. But there are plenty of less explicit forms of large-scale camouflage out there—like the architectural sort, which ranges from hiding buildings just below the ground plane to coating them in mirrors.

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16 Incredible Animals and Landscapes You Can Only See With a Microscope

16 Incredible Animals and Landscapes You Can Only See With a Microscope

The electron microscope is a fascinating scientific device—it uses an electron beam to illuminate a specimen, magnifying it up to 10 million times. With it, scientists can look deep into the substance of the world that surrounds us—and find another world, very similar to ours.

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