Life, 1921-06-02 · page 3 of 44
Life — June 2, 1921 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily **advertising**, not satire or political commentary. It's a Prudential Insurance Company advertisement that appeared in *Life* magazine. The ad uses a historical narrative framing: it credits Pytheas, an ancient Greek astronomer from Marseilles, as pioneering navigation science—a system that "served mariners for 1500 years." The text then pivots to insurance as another "great benefit to mankind." The dramatic image shows what appears to be classical or biblical figures in shadow against a stone wall, with the text "THE PRUDENTIAL HAS THE STRENGTH OF GIBRALTAR" overlaid—referencing Gibraltar as a symbol of stability and durability. This is a **brand-building advertisement** using historical precedent to suggest Prudential's reliability and lasting value, rather than political or social satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
PIONEER. OF THE ’ IN THE FOURTH TURY, B. C. WAS SO ACCURATE AND FAR SEEING THAT IT SERVED MARINERS FOR 1500 YEARS. ANOTHER PIONEER, ONLY OF MODERN TIMES, INTRODUCED ANOTHER GREAT BENEFIT TO MANKIND, INDUSTRIAL LIFE INSURANCE. The Prudential Insurance Company of America Incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey FORREST F. DRYDEN, President HOME OFFICE, NEWARK, N. J. If every woman knew what every widow knows—Every man would be insured in the Prudential comicbooks.com