Flier for Sun Ra and El Saturn Records: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A double-sided promotional flier for Sun Ra and El Saturn Records, printed in black and white on glossy paper. On the front is a photograph portrait of Sun Ra, captured from below, standing with his hands resting atop a long, cylindrical instrument. At left is “SUN RA” and just beneath the image is the Chicago post office box for Saturn Records. The back has printed text, quotes, and four poems by Sun Ra. Across the top is a wide band of black with white text reading [SUN RA SUN RA] and a graphic of a bullseye target with a celestial tail. Abstract, linear black shapes are interspersed with the text. Along the left side is “El Saturn Research” with an address for a Chicago post office box.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: ca. 1960
• Published by: El Saturn Records, American, founded 1957
• Subject of: Sun Ra, American, 1914 - 1993
• Type: fliers (printed matter)
• Medium: ink on paper
• Dimensions: H x W: 10 7/8 × 12 7/16 in. (27.6 × 31.6 cm)
• Place printed: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Composers (Musicians)
• Topic: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Poetry
• Object number: 2023.83.6
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © El Saturn Records Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.