An Important Louis Prang Family tray, engraved "To. Mr. & Mrs. Prang from Mr. & Mrs. Ackermann, Wishing Them Health & Prosperity In Their New Home, Xmas 1875", engraved Greek key design and flowers with openwork edge, diameter 14 inches, English hallmarks, good condition. Provenance: Louis Prang Estate. Note: The presentation tray is historically significant. 1874 was the year Louis Prang introduced the Christmas card to the American market. Mrs. Ackermann was the wife of Louis Prang's London agent. She had suggested in 1873 that Louis Prang begin printing Christmas cards. For this he became known as the "Father of the American Christmas card." Louis Prang (1824-1909) was one of the most prolific and influential print publishers of the 19th-century. His Boston-based firm specialized in chromolithography, a technique of printing multi-color lithographs that eliminated the need for labor- and time- intensive hand-coloring. He was known for printing the first Christmas cards in America and was personal friends of many of the leading artists of his day including Winslow Homer. His output ranged from reproductions of paintings and maps to album cards, business cards and greeting cards, and he is credited with being the first publisher of Christmas cards. These publications feature typically Victorian subjects such as flora and fauna, animals, angels and cupids, and children. Prang would be influential in founding the Arts and Crafts Movement in America and was considered the Ruskin of America.