Miniature Masterpieces
The humble cigarette card provides a breathtaking window to perhaps the most significant period in the history of mankind: 1870s-1930s. World Wars, the first Hollywood movie stars, motorcars, the Wright Brothers' first flight, famous golfers, boxers, and scarce wildlife are all vividly portrayed on these miniature masterpieces. The ingenious and simple marketing idea of inserting a cigarette card in a packet of cigarettes ignited a worldwide educational revolution, which brought knowledge to the fingertips of the average man.
Cigarette cards were designed from the start to be collected, perhaps becoming more addictive than the product itself. Even over a hundred years later, cigarette card collecting has surged ahead thanks to the ease of trading on the equally simple but innovative eBay web site. At the start of the new millennium, a Honus Wagner card became the first cigarette card ever to exceed a million dollars, and be one of the most expensive items ever to be sold on eBay. It is the cigarette card's uncanny ability to tap into the interests of a wide cross-section of society and inbuilt collectibility that have ensured its survival over other collectors' items.
The above was lifted from the Cream of Cards (UK) Web site. The cards I'm interested in picture aircraft from the late 30s to the 1960s. They are relatively inexpensive, but the artwork on some of them is excellent. Most cigarette cards measure 2 5/8" x 1 3/8". Albums for their safekeeping are available from dealers in the U.K. The card pictured above is the Convair F-102A, Delta Dagger. It is number 3 in a series of 24 Jet Aircraft of the World, produced by Sunecta Glucose Drink, (R.L. Jones & Co., Ltd.) in 1957.
These are the sets that I currently have.
No. Of Cards
|
Set Title
|
Issued By
|
Year |
Size |
Condition |
Notes
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
50
|
Modern Aircraft |
British Educational Series (BEANO) |
1951 |
Cig |
Near Mint |
|
24 |
Modern British Aircraft |
Beaulah's of Boston-Lincs |
1953 |
Cig |
Mint |
Canned Goods |
25 |
Aircraft |
B.T. Limited |
Cig |
Mint |
Tea Merchant |
|
24
|
Jet Aircraft of the World |
R.L. Jones & Co., Ltd. |
1957 |
Cig |
Near Mint |
Sunecta Glucose Drink |
25
|
Modern Aircraft |
Anonymous (UK) |
1958 |
Cig |
Mint |
|
25
|
Aircraft of Today |
Halpin's Willow Tea |
1958 |
Cig |
Mint |
|
25
|
Aircraft of the World |
Mitcham Foods |
1960 |
Cig |
Mint |
|
24
|
Wings of Speed |
J. Lyons & Co. |
1961 |
Cig |
Mint |
Lyons Tea |
25
|
Aircraft of WW II |
Hitchman's Dairies, Ltd. |
1966 |
Cig |
Mint |
Fine Tea |
50
|
Aircraft of the R.A.F. |
John Player & Sons (1938) |
1990 |
Cig |
Mint |
Reprints
|
50
|
Military Aircraft |
W.D. & H.O. Wills (1967) |
1991 |
Cig |
Mint |
Reprints
|
101
|
Wings of Fire |
Panini Canada, Ltd. |
1992 |
Reg |
Mint |
100 Cards + Checklist
|
31
|
Warbirds (#18-48) |
Top Pilot |
1990 |
Reg |
Mint |
30 Cards + Checklist
|
16
|
U.S.A.F. Fighters |
A.F. History & Museums Program |
Reg |
Mint |
14 Cards + 2 Headers |
Card Dealers |
Other Card Links |
---|---|