The Phantom ashtray was produced by Monkeys of Melbourne in Australia in 1988. The ashtray was produced in Japan before being sold in Australian pop culture retail stores, licensed by King Features Syndicate.
Monkeys of Melbourne was established in Australia by Wendy Cochran and Shane Kennedy in 1984. The company was initially based at Banks Street, South Melbourne, before later expanding due to the companies growth to Glenhuntly Road, Elsternwick and Chapel Street, Prahran both located in Melbourne.
Monkeys of Melbourne specialized and produced a range of premoulded ceramics (such as plates, lamps, vases, toby mugs and bowls) which were hand-painted and fired in a modernist style. The quality and range of products are highly regarded amongst collectors.
Ceramic works were also hand-signed and year dated, usually as simply ‘Monkey’ on the earlier pieces, then ‘© Monkeys Handpainted Melbourne’ or ‘© Monkeys Handpainted Melb’ or ‘© Monkeys of Melbourne’ as time went by.
In the early 1990s, Monkeys of Melbourne commenced producing licensed merchandise, including Ren and Stimpy, Micky Mouse, Betty Boop, and the Phantom. Most of these items were mass produced in factories, with pre-produced designs printed on goods (such as mugs and glassware) and not hand-painted.
The company ceased operating in 1999.
The Phantom ashtray is produced from Fine Porcelain with a high gloss glaze finish, measuring 14cm in diameter and 4cm in height, only available in a white color. It features an image of the Phantom riding Hero, printed onto the surface and not hand painted as traditional seen with products produced by Monkeys of Melbourne.
Around the outside edges of the Phantom ashtray, the Phantoms skull marks are found, again printed onto the surface in a black color.
The underside of the astray contains the producers details, copyright information, the year of manufacture and a profile image of the Phantom. The printed text reads ‘MONKEYS OF MELBOURNE © King Features Syndicate Incorporated 1988 MADE IN JAPAN’.
The Phantom ashtray was also produced without the skull marks around the outside edges. The underside text also differs slightly to the version above, reading ‘MONKEYS OF MELBOURNE © King Features Syndicate Incorporated 1988’, with the ‘MADE IN JAPAN’ text omitted. The text printed on this version can be seen below.
The Phantom 