Tea paper, wrapping paper

Wood-engraved paper sheet, used for wrapping small quantities of loose tea purchased from J. Roberts and Co. located at 31 the Barbican. The sheet includes the name and address of the tea merchant and an octagonal shaped engraving depicting a court scene representing one of Shakespeare's Seven Ages of man. The engraving captioned 'Shakespeare's Seven Ages Puzzle No 5' was one of a series of octagonal shaped engravings that, when cut out and pasted together formed a puzzle. Customers purchasing tea from the merchant could, therefore, collect the whole series over a period of time. As well as publicising the business marketing incentives such as the incorporation of puzzles and games in wrapping paper were employed to promote sales and encourage customer loyalty. Other puzzles produced by J Roberts were the Goose puzzle and King Canute puzzle.