Cigarette box—that is, cigarette trademark, referred to as: cigarette label.
Cigarette trademarks are based on social history and social reality, record history, reflect social life, reflect culture with rich folk customs, and produce a very valuable cigarette label culture.
It is the history and culture of cigarette labels that are both vulgar and elegant, attracting countless collectors. Driven by the wave of private collection, an unprecedented landscape of cigarette label collection has been formed.
What are cigarette labels? The trademarks and packaging of tobacco products. Wherever there are smokers, you can easily receive a cigarette carton that is looked upon with disdain. It just so happens that some people like this kind of interesting things, treat them as treasures, and collect them. It can be seen that each category of collections has various values ????considered by the collectors. There is no distinction between high and low, elegant and vulgar collections. As early as the 1930s, there was a childhood story -
The dream of collecting cigarette labels
A book called "Thirty Years" written by the famous "Filler King" Zheng Yimei "Shanghai" (note: the so-called "thirty years" refers to the thirty years before 1946) records the dictation of Qian Huafo, a famous opera actor in old Shanghai. One of the articles is "Collection of Cigarette Box Shells" ". Mr. Qian is the pioneer of cigarette label collection. It’s a pity that in that era, “collecting cigarette box shells was my sole business, and I couldn’t find another comrade.” However, “those cigarette box shells were colorful and very beautiful.” It can be seen that the beauty of the cigarette label attracted Qian Huafo's interest in collecting it. It is said that he collected thousands of cigarette labels and held a cigarette label exhibition at the Dah Sing Company in old Shanghai.
Mr. Qian Huafo’s “unique business” of collecting cigarette labels, whether consciously or unconsciously, has been followed by many people.
In the early 1960s, representatives of cigarette label collection began to emerge. Mr. Hua Shouchun from Wuxi, Jiangsu was the first to publish a publication called "Cigarette Label Catalog" in 1964, from which enthusiasts gained a lot of collection knowledge and cigarette label information. The Chiyu advertisements in this publication included cigarette labels. Chi friends gradually gathered together. Mr. Shen Mengbi of Nanjing introduced the situation of collecting cigarette labels at that time in his article "Miscellaneous Talk about Cigarette Labels". He believed that "cigarette labels must be collected one by one. It is not easy to collect 5,000 kinds. It has not been heard of before. ". However, "the joy of finding a satisfying target by chance, feeling like a treasure, and being unable to put it down is definitely not something that outsiders can appreciate"!
However, after all, the collection at that time was not popular, and with the "culture After the impact of the Great Revolution, people could no longer focus on collecting. Under the criticism of the old idea of ??"playing with things to lose one's ambition", the spark of cigarette collection was not ignited after all. However, my country's reform and opening up opened a new page in history. In the 1980s, "a sudden spring breeze came overnight, and thousands of pear trees bloomed." Collectors ushered in a climax of folk collection in the prosperous age. . With the rise of private collections, the interest in cigarette label collection began -
Interest in cigarette label collection
There have been countless golden years of collection in Chinese history, but from historical records Look, the so-called collecting is an elegant thing for wealthy people such as dignitaries and has nothing to do with ordinary people. Even from the 1950s to the 1970s, private collection was considered a luxury, and few people got involved in collecting. Fortunately, due to the social changes caused by the reform and opening up, people's lives are stable and prosperous, and in times of prosperity, anyone who is interested can really get closer to the collection.
Since the beginning of the 1980s, private collections have entered thousands of households. Chinese antiques, calligraphy and paintings, ceramics and even coins, stamps, sparklers and cigarette labels and other items with rich cultural connotations have become collection items and development directions. A booming collecting era has begun to take shape. The qualitative change of today's collecting climax is its folk nature. The number of people participating in collecting is unprecedentedly large. Nowadays, folk collection has become a cultural activity generally loved by the masses.
It is precisely driven by the strong wave of collections that an army of Chinese private cigarette label collectors has gradually formed. On October 1, 1980, Mr. Cao Aibao of Wuxi first held a cigarette label art decoration exhibition in Shanghai Huaihai Park, which caused a sensation in the collecting community. Mr. Zhang Jiawei of Suzhou has communicated with foreign countries and collected a large number of foreign cigarette labels. He also compiled books such as "Collection of World Tobacco Labels". Cigarette label enthusiasts from all over the country caught wind of this and began to communicate and exchange cigarette labels, exchange their needs, organize joint activities, etc., and the lively cigarette label collection activity began.
Based on the foundation of cigarette label collection in Jiangnan area, the collection activities are carried out in a very healthy way. According to relevant information, Nanjing's bid collection activities are unprecedentedly grand, with crowds of hundreds of people. In order to comply with the collection trend, the first collection organization in the history of Chinese cigarette label collection, the Nanjing Cigarette Label Collection Association, was established in January 1985, which became a landmark event in the cigarette label collection industry. After that, there were many cigarette label collection groups in the north and south of the country, and large-scale collection activities began. These organizations hold cigarette label art exhibitions, conduct academic research and discussions, and conduct market-adjusted auctions, promoting the impressive collection of cigarette labels to the entire society. The dream of collecting cigarette labels among Chinese people has truly come true. In order to further practice collecting, let us understand how to carry out——
Cigarette label collection activities
Before 1985, cigarette label collectors were weak and weak in society. The impact is very small. With the collection organization, a backbone force has been formed. They advocate for the collection of cigarette labels, and the collection team continues to grow.
Over the past twenty years, the cultural role of cigarette label collection has been recognized and accepted by more and more collectors. This is due to the power and guidance of collection organizations. Collection organizations in various places have carried out many Activities in various aspects; holding collection lectures in different forms; using publications to guide collection activities: displaying collection results through exhibitions, promoting collection exchanges through adjustments; and promoting collection development through evaluations. According to incomplete statistics, in the past 20 years, as many as 300 kinds of folk cigarette label publications have appeared; collectors have published 3,000 articles on cigarette labels in newspapers and books from various places; nearly 30 special topics on cigarette labels have been published; and a national folk cigarette label cultural exchange festival has been held. 9 times; participated in nearly 10 national cigarette label expositions, exchange meetings, boutique exhibitions, etc.; held more than 200 different forms of personal cigarette label exhibitions...and more collectors have accepted countless media interviews, and more The best in the collection walked into the TV screen and radio live broadcast room to speak to the audience about the knowledge and interesting facts about cigarette label collection. The more influential "Northeast Cigarette Label" private magazine also selected the "Top 100 Collectors", "Top 100 Collection Friends" and "Top Twenty Cigarette Magazines" in the history of cigarette label collecting in 2001. The 7th Cigarette Label Culture Festival was held in Wuxi. In addition to holding the first national special cigarette label collection exhibition, it also held an academic paper seminar on cigarette label culture and awarded a certain number of cigarette label collectors the honorary title.
In May 1997, the first China Cigarette Label Culture Festival was successfully held by the Yangzhou Cigarette Label Collection Association. The founders of the cultural festival are Mr. Wang Anzhu from Jiangsu and the veteran collectors of cigarette label associations in various places. They have made great contributions to promoting the development of cigarette label collection. The annual Cigarette Label Festival has been held nine times in Taiyuan, Harbin, Tianjin, Ningbo, Wuxi, Beijing and Wuhan, and Kunming has won the right to host the tenth. Through face-to-face communication between collectors, the Cigarette Label Cultural Festival has shortened the distance, promoted affection, increased collections, and presented an unprecedented grand occasion. Cigarette label collectors have reported that the festival of cigarette labels is attractive and the world of cigarette labels is very exciting.
In September 2001, at the National Cigarette Labels and Sparks Exhibition held in Beijing, the rare collections in the cigarette label industry highlighted their unique charm. Early cigarette labels have gone through a long period of time, and classic brands have shown precious historical value; early cigarette labels have obvious historical realism characteristics and artistic national characteristics; "Simplified Cover" and "Quotations" thematic cigarette labels are unique, and the former has In the history of tobacco in New China, it serves as a link between the past and the future. It is a microcosm of the history of the diligent and thrifty founding of the country by our people, and the latter has the value of historical data research; the tourist package shows the unique scenic spots; the Erudite has an early special collection on the Northeast region. Exhibiting the magnificent scenery of "white mountains and black waters"...
In the large-scale cigarette label activities in recent years, cigarette label auctions have become the highlight, which has triggered an upsurge in cigarette label investment. Most of the items participating in the auction are high-quality products from the early to middle period. Due to the passage of time, these cigarette items are rarely found in existence and are difficult to find. They often become the focus of bidding. With the deepening of collection activities, the auction market has reflected the economic value of cigarette labels. This year, the auction transaction volume has been very considerable.
The cigarette label expo organized by the China Tobacco Society and other organizations has attracted the participation of private collectors. By displaying the results of cigarette label collection and conducting academic discussions, more private collectors have reached a higher level. on the podium.
The practical significance of cigarette labels reflects the connotation of Chinese national culture. Through rich and colorful collection activities, cigarette labels show a corner of Chinese culture and art.
The most gratifying thing is that many collectors have transformed from simple collection to a higher realm. They are keen on——
Research on cigarette label collection
Collecting cigarette labels is a kind of Fun, but after all, collecting and collecting remain in the stage of collection, preservation and solitary admiration. After long-term collection, some enthusiasts have gained an understanding of the interesting, artistic, informative and historical characteristics of cigarette labels, and have taken the practice of collecting cigarette labels to a new level in their appreciation and research.
The rich connotation of cigarette label collection culture has always become the vitality of folk collection that will never decline. By studying cigarette labels, you can not only understand the development history of the tobacco industry, but also explore the reflection of national culture in cigarette labels. In the process of sorting and classifying cigarette labels, collectors compiled catalogs, studied the evolution of layouts and the origins, changes, and characteristics of cigarette labels, and also created a number of special nouns for collection. Books such as cigarette labels, appreciation guides, cultural illustrations, atlases and a large number of collection articles compiled by collectors have been published in newspapers, making unremitting efforts to enrich the historical materials of cigarette labels and expand collection and appreciation.
In twenty years or even longer collection practice, a group of scholar-type collectors have emerged in the field of cigarette label collection. They have written books and called for the establishment and development of "cigarette label collection science" , providing important basis for the foundation and theory of collection. In the 1990s, starting from the large-scale book "Collection of Early Chinese Cigarette Labels" curated by collectors and providing original cigarette labels, "Chinese Cigarette Label Culture Illustrated Collection", "Collection of Chinese and Foreign Cigarette Label Sets", "Cigarette Label Collection" A number of monographs such as "Cigarette Label Collection and Appreciation" have been published successively. Jiangsu Yangzhou Cigarette Label Collection Association and Nanjing Cigarette Label Collection Association have compiled "Illustration of Tinned Paper Cigarette Labels" and "Collection of Quotations Cigarette Labels", which were compiled by collectors. The most recent tobacco company cigarette label atlases include "Jiangsu Cigarette Label History", "Shanghai Cigarette Label Collection", "Harbin Centennial Cigarette Label Collection", etc. The production of these monographs can be regarded as the results of collection research, and also the collectors’ positive contribution to cigarette label culture.
Many collectors actively collect historical materials, and their research on cigarette labels is often unique. For example, "Introduction to Cigarette Label Collection", "Chinese Cigarette Trademark Catalog", "Cigarette Label Collection Manual", etc. are all popular textbooks and reference books to guide the collection of cigarette labels. There is also a "Comprehensive Collection of Cigarette Labels", which includes illustrations of terms, selected papers, catalogs of cigarette labels, overviews of cigarette factories, collection notes, etc. It is detailed and comprehensive. It can be regarded as a special book that completes the collection of cigarette labels. It is amazing.
Classification of cigarette labels and determination of market prices
1. Development of cigarette labels
Cigarette labels are trademarks of tobacco products, commonly known as cigarette boxes. Cigarette labels, stamps, and sparkles are known as the world's three largest collectibles.
The earliest cigarette labels were imported products, and PINHEAD was one of the first imported products to enter China. An important theme in the design of imported cigarette labels is ships, such as John Company's "Clipper" brand, British Company's "Sailboat" brand and "Sand Ship" brand, Citigroup's "Quick Ship" brand, etc.
With the introduction of cigarettes, Chinese cigarette labels gradually emerged and were loved by the people. National color, patriotism and national culture have always been the themes of Chinese cigarette labels. Such as Beiyang Tobacco Company's "Longzhu" brand. The "Samsung" brand produced by Shanghai Samsung Cigarette Co., Ltd. has the original version in the shape of the three characters of Fu, Lu and Shou, and the secondary version is decorated with the three seal characters of Fu, Lu and Shou. Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Company's "White Crane", "Magpie", "Great Wall", etc. are all very popular among people.
After the founding of New China, while completing the transformation of the old cigarette labels, many new cigarette labels were also launched, such as "China", "Pegasus", "Liberation", "Democracy", and "Happiness" etc., and at the same time, it also has obvious political overtones, such as printing the words "Resist U.S. Aid Korea, Defend Home and Country" and other words. With the development of reform and opening up, many foreign cigarettes have been introduced, such as 555, KENT, Marlboro, etc.
2. Classification of cigarette labels
In addition to being distinguished by shape, the collection community is also divided into old cigarette labels (from the early 20th century to before the founding of the People's Republic of China) and new Chinese cigarette labels (after the founding of the People's Republic of China). Cigarette labels produced before the establishment of China Tobacco Industry Corporation (between 1950 and 1963) are also called "early labels".
In addition, it can also be distinguished based on content and some other criteria.
3. Quantification of cigarette label prices
Rarity: refers to the number of cigarette labels in the market. The more cigarette labels, the lower the price. This is also the primary factor in determining the price of cigarette labels. .
The "Tonggu" brand produced by China Maosheng Foreign Company (USA), the "Dragon Ball" brand produced by Tianjin Beiyang Tobacco Company, and the "Elephant" brand produced by Beijing Elephant Tobacco Company are already rare cigarette labels.
Era: The age of cigarette labels depends on several other factors. For example, the reference price of ten cigarette labels in "Da Qianmen" before liberation was between 60 and 150 yuan. In the late 1950s, the price of "Hengda" "The reference price of commemorative labels celebrating the tenth anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China is between 200 and 400 yuan.
Representative: Does this cigarette label represent a certain period in the family, a certain category, a certain country, a region, etc. However, representativeness is only one consideration and cannot be the only factor in assessing price.
Historical certification: Cigarette labels can prove and confirm a certain historical event or a certain historical fact, and those who can prove history are of high value. For example, the "Dazhongshan" cigarette label produced by Shanghai Sanxing Tobacco Company in commemoration of Sun Yat-sen has a reference price of between 4,000 and 8,000 yuan.
Cultural nature: mainly refers to the role of cigarette labels in tobacco culture. For example, the label of the "Laodao" brand cigarettes produced in Shanghai in the early days of liberation clearly stated that "Laodao" was changed to "labor", which reflected the role of the cigarette label as a cultural carrier.