Lot 179: A Collection of Vintage Cigarette Card Albums and Ephemera by W.D. and H.O. Wills and John Player and Sons
A collection of vintage cigarette card albums and related ephemera, primarily dating from the mid-1930s. The lot consists of several softcover albums designed for the collection of trade cards issued with tobacco products by major British manufacturers.
Included albums comprise:
John Player and Sons, Association Footballers 1935–1936.
John Player and Sons, Our King and Queen, featuring portraits of King George V and Queen Mary.
W.D. and H.O. Wills, An Album of Railway Engines.
W.D. and H.O. Wills, Radio Celebrities, Second Series.
W.D. and H.O. Wills, An Album of Wild Flowers (multiple series).
W.D. and H.O. Wills, a generic brown card-stock Cigarette Pictures album.
Two albums are shown open. One contains a series on dog breeds including Great Dane, Greyhound, Mastiff, Newfoundland, Pekingese, and Pointers. The other displays marine life with cards for Common Prawn, Common Shrimp, Shore Crab, Norway Lobster, and Acorn Barnacles.
The collection includes a small cardboard packet for Player’s Navy Cut Cigarettes Medium. Several album covers bear the handwritten ownership name Derek Wilson in ink. The albums are staple-bound with printed card covers. Publisher’s marks for W. D. and H. O. Wills, Bristol and London, and John Player and Sons, Nottingham, are visible.
Condition report:
The collection shows signs of age and handling consistent with its period. Covers exhibit shelf wear, edge creasing, and bumped corners. Fading and light foxing are present across several items. Multiple covers have names written in ink. The interior cards appear generally well-preserved within the albums. Staple bindings show oxidation and light stress tears to the paper at the spine.
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