During the Spanish colonial era tobacco was brought in the country in the late 16th century. Seeds were brought in by the Augustinian brothers to be cultivated in the Philippines. The tobacco industry was one way of increasing the revenue of the Spanish government in the country as it was a big commodity for export. Let me share with you today what some of the cigarette packaging looked like during the Spanish colonial era and post era.
Cigarillos
Local farmers grew tobacco in which the Spanish government purchased the harvest from them. In Manila the government owned the factories where the cigarettes were produced. It became an industry and the Philippines became the largest tobacco producer in the whole Asia at that time. Not to mention the monopoly, greed and smuggling that occurred in the process as everyone wanted to get rich.
Remnants of the industry are old packaging from the cigarettes. These are brands made in Binondo Manila which are more than a hundred years old. The artistry on the packaging are museum worthy and maybe a prize for some collectors.
On the packaging there are some street names indicated that exist until today. Although some has been changed already but will remain to be a part of history.
I see these wrappers as artworks from the past. No digital imaging or design just pure hand drawn images that were used to market the cigarettes.
The local language on the advertising on this wrapper is quite old. Some words are so old in which I could not recognize what it means. Let me give it a try to translate it.
Lovely
That was pretty hard and I may have taken some words out of context. But reading thru it you know what they were trying to achieve.
Cigarette smoking seems to be fashionable during that time and not much is known yet about the risk it carries.
Today cigarette packaging comes with a warning with pictures of diseases that may result in smoking. Here in our country there is a nation wide ban by our President in smoking in public areas. If caught there would be fines ranging from 500-5000 pesos which is around $10.00 - $95.00 usd.
I hope you enjoyed my little share for today. Going thru a little bit of history and art from the tobacco industry in our country. Do leave some comments and remember that cigarette is dangerous to your health.
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All photos are original and taken with
Lumix GX85 and 12-32 mm
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Lumix GX85 and 12-32 mm
Hi @watersnake101,
Thank you for this blog of yours which showcases the flourishing history of Philippines especially during the reign of Spaniards in our Motherland and with that we feature this post of yours. To be honest, upon reading this blog, I remembered Jose Basco, the Spanish governor general who played an important role for the monopolization of tobacco that time. Thank you for that.
Congratulations!
Feel free to click the post below:
https://steemit.com/onerace/@onerace/onerace-update-may-17-may-18-2018-empowering-filipino-culture-and-tradition
You guys are amazing. Thanks for the support. Ahh you know your history very well with the monopoly that led to more greed and crime. Again I thank you we love what you are doing for the community.
You have been upvoted by the @sndbox-alpha! Our curation team is currently formed by @jeffbernst, @bitrocker2020, @jrswab & @teachblogger . We are seeking posts of the highest quality and we deem your endeavour as one of them. If you want to get to know more, feel free to check our blog.
Thank you. Your support is a great motivation to the community and greatly appreciated.
Ang ganda ng content thumbs up!!
Maraming salamat.
:)
That was a wonderful presentation that you gave on the art of packaging cigarettes in colonial times. Admittedly, they really are pieces of art and even their wording has a poetic person to it. Thank you for sharing this with us and all the information. I always find it very interesting to visit your posts.
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Thank you very much @dswigle. When I look at old vintage stuff and artwork from the past, I get a very warm nostalgic feeling that is hard to describe. I am very glad you appreciate it. I miss joining the #marketfriday challenge.
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gandang topic to from our history.. resteem
Thanks for the support bro as always. :)
your welcome po!!
The artwork is really impressive. Especially when you consider that they had to mass produce these. I would imagine they had some form of printing machine to do the bulk of the work. For the art alone, it is still really cool. Thanks for sharing this great post!
It it is also amazing how they had so many designs. Which means it has a very big market locally and thru export.
I did try a few in my time but I think they were far from the quality of those you are writing about. I hope someday I will get the chance to try one of the originals. Thank you for sharing this, it reminded of a thing on my bucket list hihihi.
Maybe someone is still manufacturing it here using the process of the old way. Something that I would need to investigate on.
I slightly chuckled when I read this
Perhaps, cigarillos back then really contributed to the health wellness if consumed in moderation especially if those are manufactured through the natural process.
Those traditional designs for cigarillo covers are indeed amazing! So much repsect for those artists :D
Yes not a lot is known about people dying from it during that era. Hmm still a lot to figure out makes me think about it actually.
Only in the Philippines! I'm quite amazed how cigarillos were a fashion trend in the last century!
I've seen those packaging and see it every day. Eventually, I've learned to ignore them and still do it (not advisable). lol But you know old habits die hard (I'm just making excuses).
Thanks for sharing these. It's nice to see a glimpse of our past once in a while.
Hard to get rid off right. Lol well it is a battle we need to overcome sooner or later.
Yes, I know! Hopefully, I'd be over it soon! ^^ Aja! Ikaw din?
When stressed at work which is all the time lol.
Thanks @watersnake101 for this cool presentation of cigarette packages :)
I find old design very fascinating, so many details, such diversity, such quaint vibe about those packages... But I'm happy I quit smoking years ago ;) Nowadays in Poland we have some very drastic, often repulsive pictures of health risks on cigarette packages.
These vintage packaging really caught my eye. True the details back then are very artistic. I am very glad that you overcame it and quit the habit. Something that I am still working on.