Q: I bought this Foxy Grandpa money box and wonder if he was a mascot or something. My wife and I spent all evening on Google, and your website has been our first glimpse of hope. He may be nothing, but his bold form and money slot pushes me into thinking it has to do with advertising.

A: Foxy Grandpa was a character that first appeared in a comic strip in the New York Herald in 1900. The strip was drawn by Carl E. Schultze. You have an unassembled Foxy Grandpa bank. The banks were first made by Wing Manufacturing Co. of Chicago. Wing was bought by National Novelty Co. (also known as the Toy Trust) in 1904 and its bank patterns were used by other manufacturers, sometimes with changes. Hubley Manufacturing Co. of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, made Foxy Grandpa banks through the 1920s. The type of closure can help identify the maker. Wing used turn pins to fasten the two parts together, while later versions by Hubley were fastened together with screws. Value depends on condition. Foxy Grandpa with paint loss sold online for $50. In good condition, it might sell for $150.