1930s Erdal-Kwak Trading Card – Otto Lilienthal Glider Flight – Segelflug Series 25, Card 1 (German Advertising Ephemera)

Original full-color lithographed trading card issued in the 1930s as part of the Erdal-Kwak Serienbild promotional series, created by Werner & Mertz AG (Mainz). This card is from Series 25: Segelflug (Glider Flight) and is labeled Bild 1 (Card 1). It was distributed as a free collectible premium with purchases of Erdal shoe polish and Kwak floor wax, reflecting the fusion of consumer advertising and educational themes in interwar Germany.

The card’s front features a vivid printed illustration of Otto Lilienthal mid-flight in one of his pioneering gliders, soaring above a crowd-lined hillside. Lilienthal (1848–1896) is recognized as the first person to make repeated, documented, and controlled glider flights, and his experimental work laid the foundation for heavier-than-air flight. The rear of the card provides historical context in German, explaining how Lilienthal’s muscle-powered glider designs exploited natural wind forces and marked the dawn of human aviation.

The back also includes promotional text encouraging customers to collect and redeem the cards for albums or premiums. This dual-purpose object serves both as early aviation documentation and as a fascinating example of pre-WWII German commercial culture and visual design.

This card is highly collectible among aviation historians, early advertising ephemera enthusiasts, and glider or Lilienthal memorabilia collectors. It is especially notable for combining rare subject matter with colorful and educational presentation in the tradition of early 20th-century European product premiums.