Vintage Mini Leather Book on Coach 66 Water Buffalo Leather Tanning

Description

This miniature leather bound book measures 1 3/4 inches across and 2 1/4 inches high, and has 10 pages including the inside covers.     The booklet describes the water buffalo and the ancient method, developed in India, of tanning the desirable leather. It notes that only the best hides are chosen for the "re-tanning" process using a "formula # 66" to create the leather branded 66 Water Buffalo. On the cover, presumably made of water buffalo leather, is the outline image of a water buffalo with "66 Water Buffalo" underneath. The first page has an image of 3 water buffalo, " 66 Water Buffalo" with the word "trademarked" underneath and a slogan in quotes "Nature's Most Extraordinary Leather." The little booklet is sought after,  and not commonly found, but the information given about it is often contradictory and incomplete. I've seen it dated from the early 1900's or the 1920's, when thedesign of the logo looks much more modern to me. I'd seen the  buffalo image and the "66 Water Buffalo" on leather products by Coach, but their name does not appear  in the booklet. A helpful eBay member with an exhaustive knowledge of the trademark history let me know that the 66 water buffalo trademark was first used in 1958, and the patent applied for in 1959 by the Gail Manufacturing Company - also known as the Gail Novelty Company, which was a predecessor of Coach. These little booklets were included with small water buffalo leather accessories made from the late 50's to some time in the early 1960's. The products were usually packaged without the use of the Coach or Gail names. Coach has used the 66 name recently, but with different graphics and the inclusion of the Coach name.
The well made leather cover has some small dark marks - I'm not sure whether they are natural or from wear. The pages are lightly toned, with a tiny spot of color loss on the first one.