In today’s world, advertising is inescapable. We are bombarded every day by marketing messages on our phones, computer screens and television screens. Even while reading a newspaper online, pop-up ads frequently appear, often to our annoyance. One might wonder: how did all this come about, and what purpose does it serve? As we’ve previously written, brands help consumers decide from whom to buy a particular product. If you have a great experience at a restaurant with a fictional brand like “Tony’s Tacos,” you might rave about your exceptional experience to your friends. They might then look up Tony’s Tacos on Instagram or other platforms, find its location, and even make a reservation to dine there. Without distinctive names, it would be challenging for your friends to find the recommended Tony’s Tacos.
Thus, the purpose of branding, with trademarks being a vital component, is to provide consumers with a way to identify products or services that have distinctive characteristics—such as good taste, spicy food, quick service, or even an inviting dining environment. A curious person might ask, when did branding start? Surprisingly, branding has been around long before modern-day commerce.
The Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and Vikings!
Branding has roots that stretch far back into ancient history—really ancient, like Egyptian ancient. Archaeologists have provided us with remarkable insights into ancient Egypt through meticulous examination of remains that have weathered the ages. Most of us are familiar with King Tut’s tomb, Egyptian mummies, and the Rosetta Stone. But did any of these tell us about branding?
Interestingly, imitations have been found of actual archaeological artifacts, such as scabbards. These imitations are recognized as being almost as old as the real scabbards, indicating that counterfeiting existed around 1000 to 2000 BC. Barry Kemp’s book Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization describes disputes over fake temple-branded goods in Egyptian markets.
Ancient Greek potters and artisans, starting in the eighth century BC, marked their wares with names, symbols or stamps, as noted in John Boardman’s book Athenian Red Figure Vases: The Archaic Period. The Romans, not to be outdone (first century BC and onward), extensively branded goods, evidenced by stamps on amphorae (large storage jars for wine and oil) identifying the producer and region. Apparently, our modern system of identifying wine and spirits follows this Roman method.
Hollywood often portrays the Vikings as a pillage and plunder society. However, the Vikings were primarily traders, though they admittedly obtained many of their goods through pillaging. An economist might say this was an efficient way for an ancient society to reduce costs while maximizing profits. Being a creative society, the Vikings further increased profits by counterfeiting their buyers’ coinage. Evidence has been found that Vikings counterfeited Islamic dirhams (silver coins) by reducing the amount of silver in those imitations. This practice of reducing the amount of precious metal in coins was common in medieval Europe and likely in other parts of the world as well.
Branding, it seems, has been an integral part of human commerce for millennia.
When Did Branding Start In The United States?
By some accounts, branding existed in colonial times and continued through the creation of the newly formed United States. Counterfeiting also existed. In 1791, a Massachusetts sailcloth manufacturer petitioned the federal government for trademark protection because of counterfeiting and other unfair competition practices. Thomas Jefferson, the president at the time, recommended to Congress to establish a system for registering trademarks. Congress did act on it … 81 years later in 1870.
In early America, merchants did not have the benefit of a refined legal system to protect their brands from imitators. Fortunately, today we do have such a system in place. You might consider using it. Savvy businesses do.
