unusual vintage american collectible c. 1970's cast spelter coin bank representing the first national bank of chicago, now the chase tower, and excavated from a chicago area demolition. the detailed architectural model stands on a base with text identifying the building on the front, and contains a slot and keyhole at the bottom. the miniature model represents a structure originally opened as first national plaza in 1969, a 60-story skyscraper located in the chicago loop at 10 south dearborn street. at 850 feet tall, it is the eleventh tallest building in chicago, the tallest building inside the chicago 'l' loop elevated tracks, and the 40th tallest in the country. chase is headquarrted in the building, as is exelon. the building and plaza occupy the entire block bounded by clark, dearborn, madison, and monroe streets. prior to construction of the existing building the lot contained the morrison hotel, which was demolished in 1965. design architects for the construction were c.f. murphy associates, stanislaw gladych, and perkins and will, and the tower is known for both its distinctive curving shape and its use of public space. the manufacturer of the coin bank is marked at the base, "banthrico, inc". the company started in 1931 when aronson and joseph eisendrath purchased the business and equipment of banker's thrift corporation, creating a new company with the abbreviation "banthrico". most banks were clearly incised with the banthrico name in the base and/or trap door of the bank until the company was sold to toystalgia in 1985. banthrico made over 900 different metal banks, most sold to financial institutions. most of the banks were made of "white metal" consisting of 95% zinc, 5% aluminum and traces of copper, brass, and lead. the production required a highly skilled workforce including a sculptor, mold maker, engraver, chemist, and metallurgist. the production was by hand: the caster poured the molten metal into each mold separately. later, imperfections and burrs were removed with a belt sander and buffing wheel. banks were then colored through an electroplating process and a clear lacquer was applied. over the years banthrico made incursions into other product lines including lamp parts, trophies, bookends, figurines, and machine parts. all production of the approximately 75 employee company was in a chicago manufacturing facility. measures 7 1/2 inches tall.