What makes matchbooks valuable

The best-of-the-best offered their patrons fine foil-finished extra-large paper matches and wooden matches in sturdy cardboard sleeves, sometimes in long lengths to accommodate pipe smokers.

Caption: Political campaigns regularly gave out matchbooks as a useful advertisement that was likely to come in handy. Caption: Trips to interesting places were often commemorated by taking a matchbook to add to a growing collection.

Caption: Paper matches were invented in the late s, and their production peaked in the s, as disposable butane lighters became widely available. So the next time you find yourself with a little time on your hands, haul out that old cigar box full of matches and see if you have any rare specimens hiding in the cupboard.

Facebook Twitter Email. Never cut, glue, or staple covers. Never write on the outside of covers, and, if you do have to make any marks, only use light pencil on the inside. Don't wrap them tightly in rubber banded stacks. Don't store them in damp areas or areas where they will be directly exposed to sunlight for extended periods.

Categories - Covers are collected by categories, of which there are hundreds, and there are more being added all the time--Millennium, web site, e-mail address covers, for instance. There are subject categories Beer, Military, Holiday Inns, etc. Few collectible hobbies are as flexible as this one in that a collector can find his or her own nitch in matchcover collecting and tailor it to suit his or her own interests and needs.

Some standard sized retro s matchboxes feature a crank handle that powers up a 'happy birthday' tune when turned. Souvenir wooden striker collectable matchboxes and matchbooks from the s are often decorated with classic scenic photographs of holiday destinations. Some styles also have matchboxes with ribbon pulls for easy handling.

Sets of novelty collectable matchboxes and matchbooks are perfect for creating a focal feature within your collection. Choose vintage items that include matchbox tubes and other collectables. Rare British Airways Concorde matchboxes are the perfect addition to any collector's acquisitions. Many phillumenists focus on collecting novelty collectable matchboxes and matchbooks that concentrate on a particular period, style or theme.

These collections can easily be organised and displayed in a glazed door cabinet for viewing pleasure. Phillumenists who prefer to collect novelty collectable matchboxes and matchbooks that appeal to their personal taste have a wide variety of collecting options to choose from.

Skip to main content. Shop by Category. That does not mean, though, that you should only set your sights on the rarest or most vintage finds. The wonderful thing about phillumeny is you get to decide what type of collector you want to be. That means it is up to you to qualify if a matchbook or box match is worth collecting. For example, some phillumenists do not look at the box match value.

Instead, they collect labels with artwork that fascinate them. Other collectors focus on specific eras, while others chase after every type of book and box. If you choose to be a vintage matchbook collector, it helps to know your matchbook history, starting with the first promotional matchbooks. Here is a fun fact. In , Henry Traute ordered 10 million matchbooks with Pabst beer on the covers.