P28 Antique Japanese Advertising Poster – Ribbon Citron (リボンシトロン) Soda, Pre-War Japan, c. 1920s–1930s

Rare Japanese advertising poster promoting Ribbon Citron (リボンシトロン), one of Japan’s earliest and most famous carbonated lemon-flavored soft drinks, dating from the Taishō to early Shōwa period (circa 1920s–1930s), before World War II.

This exact design corresponds to known pre-war Ribbon Citron posters documented in Japanese auction archives. The painterly illustration style, traditional interior setting, and the combination of a modern Western beverage with classical Japanese aesthetics clearly place this work in the interwar period, when Western-style drinks were becoming fashionable and were marketed as symbols of modern life, refinement, and leisure.

Ribbon Citron was introduced in the Taishō era and became one of the iconic soft drinks of early 20th-century Japan. Posters like this were displayed in shops and public spaces and were designed not only to advertise the product but also to associate it with elegance, taste, and contemporary lifestyle.

This is an excellent example of pre-war Japanese advertising art, combining bijin-ga influenced imagery with early modern commercial design, and represents an important visual document of Japan’s emerging consumer culture.

Details:

Product: Ribbon Citron (リボンシトロン) soda
Subject: Beverage advertising
Period: Pre-war Japan, c. 1920s–1930s (Taishō – early Shōwa)
Technique: Lithographic advertising poster
Country: Japan
Condition: Original vintage poster with age-related wear
Presentation: Framed with museum glas