# Mastercard Adverts Through The Ages

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mastercard-adverts-through-the-ages/169846>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [April 20, 2003, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mastercard-adverts-through-the-ages/169846 "2003-04-20T13:50:59Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Evil\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecccb3/32.png) [@Evil\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Death)\
**Post date:** [April 20, 2003, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mastercard-adverts-through-the-ages/169846/1 "2003-04-20T13:50:59Z")

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Of late, I’ve found myself rather hacked off by those hideous Mastercard adverts in which we are informed that borrowing lots of money from them is priceless. They seem to have been around forever.

So what if they had?

1888

Black suit, top hat and Inverness: Ten pounds, six shillings  
Knives of finest Sheffield steel: Three guineas  
Carriage ride to Whitechapel: Two shillings and sixpence

Cleansing the streets of filthy whores: Priceless  
Or possibly…

2450BC

One million tons of stone: 100,000 talents  
40,000 slaves working time and a half for a year: 5,000 talents  
Gold and lapis inlaid sarcophagus: 1,000 talents

A luxurious eternal life in the next world: Priceless  
Any more for any more?

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**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [April 20, 2003, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mastercard-adverts-through-the-ages/169846/2 "2003-04-20T14:36:05Z")

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1950’s:

The latest “rock and roll” album: $1.98

An evening at the movies for the family: $5.00

Repressing women and minorities: Priceless

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**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\
**Post date:** [April 20, 2003, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mastercard-adverts-through-the-ages/169846/3 "2003-04-20T14:48:14Z")

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Earliest MasterCard commercial that we have record of (for some reason, they invented credit cards before they invented money):

Sticks: some plants  
More sticks: a large chunk of rock  
Even more sticks: your wife

Setting self on fire: priceless

Some things no buy with money…whatever that is. All other things MasterCard do. Accepted all places.

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**Author:** ![jeanster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc348/32.png) [@jeanster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jeanster)\
**Post date:** [April 20, 2003, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mastercard-adverts-through-the-ages/169846/4 "2003-04-20T18:11:01Z")

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[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=138905&perpage=50&pagenumber=33](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=138905&perpage=50&pagenumber=33)

Read Nithy’s post. It’s second down from the top.