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2018年3月18日 (日)

Bridgestone Guarantee Medals

次回この記事の日本語版を投稿します。

As far as I know Japan is the only country that had a practice of attaching a guarantee medal to bicycles. For those unfamiliar with this intriguing subject refer to the 3-part series below.
In this post we will examine two Bridgestone guarantee medals.  The origins of the name Bridgestone comes from the founder's last name Ishibashi written with the two characters (石=stone 橋=bridge).  The founder reversed the two to form Bridgestone.

The original trademark consisted of BS (Bridge + Stone) encased in a keystone.
Original_trademark


The first medal reads:
Guaranteed for 5 Years, Bridgestone Tire Co., Ltd. 
Img_0179

On the back, in addition to stating that the company will provide free replacement in case of damage caused by manufacturing defects, it also indicates die cast frame patents obtained in Japan, Britain, France and Holland.
Img_0181

The second medal reads: Bridgestone Bicycle Co., Ltd.
Note that the keystone is in the center of a bicycle tire, and, more interestingly, that each of the letters surrounding the tire are set in a separate keystone.
Img_0182

The back states that the company uses its many years of experience, latest technology and choicest materials to produce superior bicycles guaranteed for one year.
Img_0184

It is important to note here that the Bridgestone Tire Co., Ltd was established in 1931.  In 1949 the company spun-off the bicycle division forming Bridgestone Bicycle Co., Ltd.  Based on this information, along with the detailed history of Bridgestone Tire Co., Ltd. and Bridgestone Bicycle Co., Ltd. the medal on the right is the older of the two around 1951 or earlier, and, the medal of the left post 1951.

(Front)
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(Back)
Img_0186

More on Bridgestone coming soon.

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