Both plant life and animals have featured regularly in card sets brought out by the main tobacco companies, and natural themes have continued to be put out as trade issues from the 1940s onwards. Anyone interested in these areas will not find themselves short of cards to collect.
Flower sets had been popular before the First World War, with Lea’s Flowers to Grow of 1913, and Wills’ Old English Garden Flowers running to two sets. The latter firm had produced a set of Roses in 1912. These sets are one of many that were reprinted in the 1990s to enable collectors to have their attractive designs within their albums without the high cost of the originals. A set of Wills’ Old English Garden Flowers 1st series from 1911 will cost around £75 in very good condition.
After the First World War, many council and private houses were built with garden areas to front and rear, and gardening became a popular hobby in which homeowners and tenants vied with each other to create areas of aesthetic beauty. Wills focussed on advice in the garden with their Garden Life series of 1914, Gardening Hints of 1923 and Garden Hints of 1938. Included was information on layering carnations, the correct depth to plant bulbs, and laying crazy paving. For those wishing to undertake this last project, the advice was:
MAKING. Mix thoroughly Portland cement (1 part) and sand (3 parts) with a minimum of water. Work with spade to uniform consistency and spread evenly on level surface to a depth of 1½ inches. After about 3 hours, cut with a trowel into irregular shapes (left). Protect from sun and wind, and keep damp during hardening; pieces may then be lifted with spade. LAYING. Relay in required position, bedding them firmly in cement mortar (cement 1 part, sand 6 parts; sufficient water to make workable mixture). Straight-sided pieces are laid first (right-hand illustration). If preferred, joints may be filled with coloured cement.
Player was a leader in the field of using the theme of plants and flowers to educate the public. 1923 saw their set Struggle for Existence (Plants and Flowers). It dealt with the reproduction of plant life through the fertilisation of pollen and the self-sowing of seed. In 1929 they brought out an educative set of 25 Hidden Beauties (Plant Life Highly Magnified) which showed the inner workings of many common forms of plant. Both these attractive and informative sets are relatively inexpensive.
Flowers remained a popular theme for card issues right up until the Second World War, with Wills’ Garden Flowers of 1933 being a set of 50 which can now be bought for around £35. The set included the popular Aster plant. We learn that:
Nearly two hundred years ago the Aster came to us from China and from the little mauve flower of our 18th century gardens, succeeding generations of florists have produced the wonderful range of colour and form from which we choose our Asters to-day. They are half-hardy annuals invaluable for bedding, borders and cutting. Sow in March and place in a frame; when crowding, prick out to 3 in apart. At the end of May plant out into well-manured beds. Stake when necessary and apply a top-dressing of decayed manure, or water with weak liquid manure, twice weekly in July and August.
Gallaher’s Garden Flowers of 1938 was an eye-catching set of 48 cards which can be bought in top condition for around £10, while Flower Studies by Phillips (1937) was an attractive set of medium sized cards. Two outstanding sets featuring flowers were the Kensitas series of 1933 and 1934, made of silk. Many aficionados consider them the most beautiful card inserts ever given away for free. Such was the delicacy of the weaving, cards were given with a protective folder. The first series had 60 cards numbered alphabetically from Antirrhinum through to Violet, with the second series featuring 40 cards. There was also an explanatory note on the back of the sleeve justifying the extravagant design:
Why do we give you these inserts?
Because tobacco is a plant and
we want you to realise that only
the Finest Virginia Tobacco is used in
Kensitas – the clean centre leaves – these
are the mildest leaves – They cost more
They taste better
It is not known who wove the cards, with suggestions being that this work was done either in Coventry or mid-Europe. A set in top condition will cost the best part of £300.
In 1912 Gallaher issued a very fine set of 100 Woodland Trees, with each card having a small inset of the leaf or flower of each tree. Even a set rated at good to very good can cost close to £500. Wills’ set of Flowering Trees and Shrubs of 1924 features an upper half showing the leaves, flowers and fruit, while the lower portion of the card shows the base of the tree trunk and its bark. This very appealing set can be purchased for a more modest £40. Lambert and Butler’s British Trees and Their Uses from 1927 featured a picture of each tree, with an inset of a typical use for the wood. For example, the oak tree was accompanied with a set of table and chairs. We are told that:
The British Oak varies in height from 60-130 ft according to situation. When grown in the open it sometimes develops a huge hole, and the spreading branches become crooked, producing naturally curved timber valuable for ship-building. The familiar acorns form useful food for pigs. From the slow growing wood, pre-eminent for strength and durability, were built the old ‘wooden walls’ of England as well as much of the timber-work at Westminster Hall and Abbey and elsewhere. Oak is largely used for furniture, panelling, carving, veneer, and by carpenters and builders.
Following the Second World War, plants and trees continued to be popular subjects for card manufacturers. The razor company Wilkinson Sword issued a very small set of 4 cards of Garden Tools in 1961. Lambert’s Tea focussed on one particular plant for a 1967 set of Cacti. Trucards brought out Flowers in 1970 and British American Tobacco issued an attractive set of Fleurs de Culture in 1961. Ringtons Tea brought out Fruit of Trees and Shrubs in 1963 and Brooke Bond an evocative set of Trees in Britain in 1966. This was accompanied by a special album. The same firm commissioned Charles Tunnicliffe RA to provide the paintings for two of their sets of Wild Flowers in 1959 and 1964. All these sets cost just a few pounds each, so the new collector wishing to build up a collection based on this theme can do so relatively quickly at a minimal cost.
The popular hobby of ornithology has been reflected in the issue of dozens of sets relating to birds. From the 1880s onwards, Church & Dwight, the American manufacturer of Arm and Hammer Baking Soda, began a ninety-year corporate tradition of producing bird cards. Their aim was to help to preserve species that were disappearing, as many of their cards carried the message, ‘For the Good of All, Do Not Destroy the Birds.’ Despite this message, some species began to disappear, such as the Passenger Pigeon, featured in the 1908 set New Series of Birds. This bird was hunted to extinction for its meat, with the last known survivor dying in captivity in Cincinnati Zoo in 1914.
One of the earliest British sets was Lambert & Butler’s Birds & Their Eggs, issued in 1906, a delightfully drawn set on a white background to emphasise the colours of the subject matter. A further early issue of birds in Britain was Wills’ British Birds of 1916, another well-illustrated set. Just after the First World War, Gallaher put out a significant set of 100 Birds’ Nests & Eggs, and another set featuring eggs was the striking Ogden set of Birds Eggs (1922). This group of cards showed a close-up of the eggs with a background of twigs, feathers and moss. The distinctive feature of the cards was that the outline of the egg had a perforated edge which enabled the rest of the card to act as base so the egg could be displayed upright. Ogden used the same idea for their British Birds series of 1923, and each set can now be purchased for £30-40.
Wills’ Life in the Tree Tops from 1925 is another visually appealing set, depicting 50 species in their natural habitats high above the ground. This is a superb set for the money, a very good to excellent set costing around £20. When the breeding and keeping of aviary birds became a popular hobby in the 1930s, Player issued a standard 50-card set in 1933 followed by a 25-card set of lavish illustrations in large size, both titled Aviary and Cage Birds. Another popular hobby at the time was pigeon-racing, a sport that had developed in Belgium in the mid-nineteenth century. The sport came to Britain in 1881 and continues to this day with royal patronage. During the First World War, pigeons had been used extensively by armies on both sides to convey messages between the front line and rear lines of communication. The BBC was conducting wireless broadcasts of pigeon races in the 1930s and by the end of the decade there were approximately 120,000 UK members of the International Pigeon Board. In 1931 Ogden issued a set of 50 of these birds, and how to house and train them, as Racing Pigeons, and due to its scarcity it can cost up to £100 for an excellent set.
Player commissioned Peter Scott (later Sir Peter) to illustrate their 25-card Wild Fowl set of 1937. Scott was a keen ornithologist, conservationist, artist and broadcaster, who during the Second World War was to be awarded the MBE for his development of an ingenious camouflage for warships. For their artistic quality, this set is one of the finest British ornithological issues. Carreras issued the delightful Birds of the Countryside in 1939 and Player brought out Birds & Their Young in 1937, the latter with an accompanying album.
One final pre-war set worthy of mention is Player’s Curious Beaks of 1929. According to Roy Genders, this set of 50 cards ‘must take some beating and is a set to include in every collection’. To do so would set the collector back around £40. The cards show the heads and beaks of birds noted for their strange formations. Another bird which is now sadly extinct is the Dodo, but it is commemorated in this set. We are told that its Latin name is Didus ineptus and that:
This remarkable bird was discovered in Mauritius in 1598. The name Dodo, from the Portuguese Doudo, simpleton, refers to its sluggish habits and disinclination to escape at the approach of man. From various 17th cent. travellers we learn that ‘the Dodar is not able to flie, being so big,’ that ‘its fflesh is very hard’ and that it was accustomed to swallow ‘large pebble stones as bigge as nutmegs.’ It appears to have been about the size of a Turkey and to have frequented forests, where it fed upon roots, and laid its single white egg on a mat of grass. By the end of the 17th cent. the Dodo had become extinct, for besides man, hogs and other animals helped to exterminate it.
Since the Second World War, a myriad of bird related sets has been issued, mostly available at modest prices. They include Sweetule’s Birds and Their Eggs (1955), Digby’s British Birds of Prey (1994) by the Victoria Gallery, a set of 6, and Cadbury’s Birds in Springtime, a large set of 12 from 1983. In fact the number of bird related issues is so vast, it would warrant a book of its own, but this section has given just a flavour of the attractiveness and variety to be had for cartophilists pursuing this line of interest.
Household pets have also proved a popular theme for cards, with, at the time of writing, over 150 sets on the subject available on the London Cigarette Card Company website, as well as many other sets that may be found upon request. Some of these are general series, such as Phillips’ Home Pets of 1924, a set of 25 which now sells for around £50. By far the most popular theme for pet cards however, is that of the dog.
In 1924 Moustafa commissioned Leo Chambers to paint 40 Dogs’ Heads, which capture human-like expressions against a pale background. This is a rare collection, costing around £140 for a high-quality set. In the same year Sanders, a manufacturer of ‘custard de luxe’ and ‘transparent and full-flavoured jelly crystals’, issued a set of 20 Dogs to coincide with that year’s Kennel Club’s Crufts Show. These delightfully illustrated cards gave the smoker an insight into the characteristics needed to be successful at the show. This set is again comparatively expensive, at around £80 for a mint set.
Player became a prolific issuer of dog sets, with a set with scenic backgrounds in 1924, followed by various series of Dogs’ Heads, featuring artwork by the noted canine artist Arthur Wardle (1860-1949). In 1936 Ogden and Hignett both issued a set of 50 Dogs, which are a popular choice today with very good to excellent sets selling for well over £100, although they are also available in reproduction form. The cards provide an informative overview of each breed’s origins and features, such as the information given about the Bulldog.
The bulldog is probably descended from the old English mastiff, and was formerly used for the cruel pastimes of bull-and bear-baiting. Prominent features of this immensely strong and active old breed were its upturned underjaw (which enabled the dog to breathe while holding firmly to tethered quarry) and its powerful low front and light headquarters. After the abolition of bull-and bear-baiting the bulldog was used for dog fighting, and was one of the breeds that helped to produce the bull terrier.
Probably the final set issued before production ended in wartime was Player’s Dogs’ Heads in 1940. These featured paintings by the artist Peter Biegel (1913-89) who had only decided to take up art as a serious career after a stint in his father’s business in the City of London.
Not to be excluded, cat lovers can also find cards which reflect their pet passion. Player issued a set of 24 large cards of Cats in 1936 which also retails at well over £100. They are similar to the Dogs’ Heads sets, with only the head being shown in the style of a human portrait and the felines having almost human expressions on their faces. We learn about the short-haired tabby cat:
This is one of the rarest, most beautiful and most highly prized of our British Cats. The ground colour should be pure silver without any admixture of grey hairs. The tabby markings should be deep black in colour and very sharply defined. The head should have the markings narrow but distinct; the chest markings which are most important, should consist of three bands across the chest; the legs should be barred right down to the claws; the body marks should follow the curves of the body; and the tail should be evenly ringed, the markings being narrow towards the top, like the tail itself. The eyes should be round, full and bold in shape, and orange brown or hazel in colour. Many English Silver Tabbies fail in eye colour, by showing an approach to the green eye of the Long-haired Silvers.
Tragically, the Second World War caused an event termed the ‘British Pet Massacre’. In 1939 the UK government’s National Air Raid Precautions Animals Committee issued advice to pet owners. Concerned that owners would split precious food rations with their pets, or leave them to stave, the committee advised evacuating pets to the countryside, or having them destroyed. This led to 750,000 pets being put down, much to the anguish of the RSPCA and the PDSA.
Following the war, many pet sets were issued. Some of these featured a range of household pets, such as Priory Tea’s Pets from 1957, running to 24 cards, Horniman Tea’s 1960 series of 48 Pets, and Our Pets from Weetabix in 1961, a set of 25 large cards. Other pets featured in cards which are eminently collectable at a very modest price include Mitcham Foods’ Aquarium Fish double series of 1957. Crystal Cat Cards have, in the twenty-first century, issued a significant number of amusing series of cat cards, including Cats Sports and Leisure (2005) and Cats in Black (2005). These sets are of large size and number just 6 each, costing around £3 per set.
Dogs continue to proliferate, with inexpensive sets issued by Imperial Publishing in the late 1990s featuring Border Collies, Boxers, Bulldogs, Dachshunds, Dalmatians, and Cocker Spaniels. In 2005, Perikem issued many sets, including breeds which have become more popular over the past three decades such as the Rottweiler and Staffordshire Bull Terrier. Trebor, the confectionery firm, put out a set of 24 Famous Pets in 1972, showing pets in dramatic actions, while Priory Tea (1957) produced a more sedate issue of Pets including mice and guinea pigs.
Apart from the popular subject of birds and dogs, many other animals have featured in card sets. One unusual set of animals is Player’s British Livestock of 1915. The cards recall a time in which heavy horses still did much of the work on the land and in family businesses, and feature breeds of British cattle, sheep and pigs. For those collectors wishing to pursue a more specific interest in horses, there is Player’s Types of Horses from 1939 and Lambert & Butler’s Horsemanship of 1938. Typhoo Tea brought out a nice set of 25 large cards of Horses in 1934, with the front of the card divided between a painting of the breed and a short description. The reverse of the card was reserved for an advertisement for tennis and golf balls.
The attractive natural colours of butterflies make them an appealing subject for card sets. Player’s issued an early set of 50 Butterflies & Moths in 1904 which can now sell for nearly £100. One of the finest examples of this subject is R. & J. Lea’s Butterflies & Moths of 1927. This was a set of 12 large silk cards with brilliant colours. Wills also issued a set of 40 large cards on the topic in 1938. While these sets emphasised the attractiveness of the creatures, Gallaher’s set of 48 cards of Butterflies and Moths of the same year contain pictures of butterflies in their natural habitats. One of the more striking designs is to be found on the Death’s Head Hawk, so named due to the skull and cross bones on its back. This, along with its unique habit of squealing when captured, gave it, according to the card, ‘an uncanny reputation among country people. It is the largest moth found in the British Isles, with wings extending up to five inches. This very engaging set costs around £20 in excellent condition and is well worth the price.
One final animal that has been the subject of many issues is the fish. One of the earlier sets was Wills’ set of 50 Fish and Bait of 1910, since reprinted in 1990 to make the attractive cards generally available. Phillips’ Fish set of 25 produced in 1924 can now sell for £75. One set that can be a challenge to collect, due to its rarity, is Churchman’s Fishes of the World. The set was originally issued in 1912 with 50 cards and then reissued in 1924 as a set of 30. Included was the popular British fish and chip shop staple, the Cod-Fish. We are informed that ‘It is a most useful fish to mankind. Immense numbers are caught on the banks of Newfoundland, and on the coasts of North Europe and America. English fishermen resorted to the Cod-fisheries of Iceland before 1415.’
The rising popularity of the public and home aquarium was reflected in various issues in the pre-and post-war years. Sandorides produced a large set of 25 cards of Aquarium Studies at the London Zoo in 1925 and Morris At the London Zoo Aquarium in 1928. Four separate companies, Mitcham Foods (1957), Pukka Tea (1960), Amalgamated Tobacco (1961) and United Diaries (1964) all put out sets with the title Aquarium Fish. While the 1961 and 1964 sets can be bought for a few pounds, the other two can cost up to £50 for an excellent set. Hints for fishermen were included in Barratt’s Fish and Bait in 1962, the name also used for the Badshah Tea issue of 25 cards of 1965.
Thus, from the air, to the land, to the sea. There is a vast variety of cards to engage the interest of animal enthusiasts, and inexpensive sets which can act as an introduction to cartophily. Some of the more obscure sets may have to be collected as odds, thus many years pleasure can be had building such a collection.