If These Shirts Could Talk: The Tantalizing Tales Behind Used Clothes
Jockeying for Position: How Boxers and Briefs Got Into Men's Pants
Gloriously Grotesque 19th-Century Pipes
In the Hot Seat: Is Your Antique Windsor a Fake?
Love at First Kite: How Pizza and Pente Led to One Oklahoman's High-Flying Obsession
Blood, Sweat, and Steel: My Afternoon with the Ace of Swords
'The Great Gatsby' Still Gets Flappers Wrong
Say Ahhh: An Oral Surgeon's Quest to Reimagine the Garage-Band Guitar
Forget TV Pickers, Meet the Real Mavericks of the Antiques World
Coveting The Craziest Cat-People Collectibles
Tobacco became popular in Europe in the 1600's, after traders brought back tobacco plants from the Americas. Pipes, borrowed from the Native Americans, were the first popular method of smoking, and were made of wood, bone, clay, and even metal. Some of the most valuable antique pipes are those made of meerschaum, a rare white stone.
Cigars, which have long been popular in Central and South America, have a whole set of collectibles associated with them, including cigar boxes, humidors, cigar cutters, and special
cigar lighters.
Next came the cigarette, popularized during the Crimean war when soldiers would roll their pipe tobacco in newsprint. Related collectibles include tobacco tins, tobacco cards, ashtrays, matchbooks, and vintage advertising and signs. Over the years, tobacco companies created iconic logos like Zig-Zag's Zouave and The Camel (later Joe Camel), and put their slogans on everything from clothing to posters to statuettes...
Cigarette lighters are a category all their own, with major brands including Zippo, Ronson, and Dunhill. There's a wide variety of lighters to collect in every material imaginable. Although lighters haven't changed much from their original designs in the early 1900s, the older the lighter, the more decorated they tend to be. And don't forget the lighter's precursor, the lowly but often highly ornamented match holder (aka match safe).
by Interviews & Articles
Where There's Smoke There's a Vintage Cigarette Lighter
At the very beginning, my interest in lighters was about the mechanism. I had my first lighter when I was 14. I saved up my nickel… [more]
Collecting Vintage Cigarette Lighters
Cigarette lighter collecting is a hobby that never gets boring. Just by browsing eBay auctions for ten minutes, for example, I rec… [more]
Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)
Match World
This ambitious site showcases the 20,000-item Rankei Library matchbook collection, owned by the Japan Match Manufac… [read review or visit site]
Kensitas Silk Flowers
Don Wearmouth and his wife showcase the 230 beautiful silk designs that were distributed free with Kensitas cigaret… [read review or visit site]
Matchbox Labels
Jane McDevitt's huge Flickr photoset of matchbox labels, primarily Eastern European, from the 1950s and 60s. These … [read review or visit site]
Truth in Advertising
This gallery of cigarette magazine advertising from the 1940s and 50s contains no surgeon general's warning, just p… [read review or visit site]
Matchbook Museum
James Lileks' gallery of 400 matchbooks from coffee shops, hotels, motels, bars, banks, restaurants and more. Lilek… [read review or visit site]
Clubs & Associations: Tobacciana
- North American Society of Pipe Collectors
- The Cigarette Pack Collectors' Association
- On The Lighter Side
- The Cigarette Packet Collectors Club of Great Britain
- The Rathkamp Matchcover Society
Other Great Reference Sites: Tobacciana
Top eBay Auctions
Vintage Zippo Lighter 1940s 3 Barrel 14 Hole W/box
Antique 19thc Victorian Solid Silver & Enamel Erotic Cigarette Case C.1894
S.t. Dupont Versailles Limited Edition L 2 Lighter, Nib
S. Bang A Ph Pipe Unsmoked 
Rare Dunhill Box Set, Watch , Lighter, Cufflinks, Pen - Complete!
Estate Rare Vintage 1940's ? Dunhill Silent Flame Superman Table-top Lighter &
S.bang (denmark) - Straight Smooth Pot - Signature Grade - Top Of The Line
Dunhill Xl Dr * Pipe Massive Straight Grain 
1937 - 40 Zippo Lighter Buick Auto Metallique 2 Sided Metallique Rare Very Nice 
New Unsmoked! Jake Hackert Nosewarmer Thick Billiard American Estate Pipe W/ Bag
Award Winning 8 1/8" Long Gbd Unique Straight Grain Lovat--very Rare & Pristine!
Original Cased Unused Peterson's Pipe With Dublin Silver Collar - Circa 1917
19thc Antique Bohemian Gilt Enameled Cut Red Glass Hookah Pipe Islamic Arabic
Rare Silver Enamel Cigarette Case /beautiful Noble Lady Or Gentlewoman
New 1940s Zippo Lighter Dodge Auto Ad Rare With Banner Mint In Box J
Rare Slim Zippos Hertz Renta Car Lighters 
S.t. Dupont L2 Lighter Palladium Brosse Theme High Tech,new In Box, Model 016791
Wolfgang Becker Double Wolf Paw Wasp Pipe 
Vintage Zippo Lighter Display Case With 36 Vintage Zippo's
Peter Hedegaard Cc Pipe Unsmoked 
Volcano Vaporizer Classic In Box
1930s Zippo Lighter Reverse Etched And Pantograph 
Teddy Knudsen Pipe 
Don Ramon Partagas 150 Signature Series Cigar Box/humidor W/ 2 Cigars
Charatan Supreme S 100 Lane Era Pipe 
Pair Fine Antique Italian Silver Vermeil And Enameled Cigarette Lighter And Case
Hitman Glass (50mm) Sidecar Hammerhead Direct Injection Vapor Rig
Castello Collection Fiammata K Pipe 
Austrian Estate Pipe: Peter Matzhold Oe
Dunhill Lighter Rollalite 14k Gold Outer Jacket Art Deco Vintage Lighter Works! 
Northern Briars - Ian Walker - Regal - Rox Cut Huge Billiard - Handmade Unsmoked
Gorgeous! Lane Era Charatan's Make Selected Xl Freehand English Estate Pipe Mint
S.yanik Meerschaum Pipe Bone Hand Holding Skull
S.yanik Meerschaum Pipe Cleopatra
1980s Golden Elegance Mickey Mouse Brass Zippo W Box Original Price Sticker J
Viaje Zombie's...... Not Padron,tatuaje,opus X,
Dunhill Oda 836 Panel 1961 - Near Mint Condition.
Solid Brass Dragon Ashtray Stand-scroll Art Co. 
Vintage 9k Gold Vesta Match Safe Case Art Nouveau Flowers
Ronson Touch Tip Cigarette Lighter And Gorgeous Deco Clock Combination
Antique Brass Fighting Devil Figure Satan Toothpick Match Safe Holder Goblin
Solid 9ct Gold Edwardian Asprey Lighter Match
Dunhill Shell Xl Collector Pipe Unsmoked 1998
10 X Eshish Mixed Pack Of 5 (genuine) E Shisha Sticks 300 Puff (total 50 Sticks)
Fresh Choice Electric Make Your Own Cigarette Making Machine
Northern Briars - Ian Walker - Huge Lb Regal Handmade - Unsmoked Mint Condition
Zippo Titanium Lighter
S.yanik Meerschaum Pipe Red Fox
Lighter Dupont Gatsby Limited Edition St. Petersburg 2003 - 18004 - N.132/300
Unusual Solid Silver Oval Vesta Case With Enameled Plaque Of Soldier London 1898
Barling Special, Ye Olde Wood Estate Pipe
Rainer Barbi Aa Pipe 
Michael Butera "textured Classic" A Grade Large Bent Lovat Pipe - Pipestud
S.t. Dupont Gatsby Gold Plate Mirror Finish / Authentic 
Tiffany & Co. Elsa Peretti Bean Sterling Silver Lighter Engravable #1307-f
Castello Collection Kkkk Briar Pipe New Pipe Pipa Nuova
S.yanik Meerschaum Pipe Pirate
Ardor "urano Roccia" Giant Apple - (estate Pipe)
Lighter Dupont Line 1 (big) Limited Edition French Revolution 1989 Mosaic
Very Rare Missing Deuce On A 1942 Patent , 4 Barrel, From Ww11. Insert Is Great
Recent News: Tobacciana
Source: Google News
2013 Spring Wine Guide: Beacon Hill Estate gains new life as a wine collective
OregonLive.com, May 20thThe Andreescus purchased the property, leasing the fruit back to Soter through the 2006 vintage. Beacon-Hill-steel-tank.JPG View full sizeA stainless steel tank rises two stories inside Beacon Hill, .... In June, she will release "Tour Rain" ($25), an...Read more
State House Notebook: Republicans try to debunk Medicaid savings claim
Press Herald, May 19thProponents of the bill cite a 15-year-old investigation by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms that found gun shows were responsible for 26,000 illegally sold guns. The Northeast was responsible for 8 percent of those gun sales. The...Read more
Editor's Journal: A Weekend in Pictures
CaryCitizen, May 19thCenterStage. Friday evening was perfect for CenterStage, a collaboration between WUNC's Back Porch Music and the American Tobacco Historic District in Downtown Durham. A large and enthusiastic crowd turned out for the first show More than 100 cars...Read more
Blue Ridge high: The pleasures of Roanoke beckon
Pittsburgh Post Gazette, May 18thA vintage safety sign at Black Dog Salvage expresses the Roanoke mood toward visitors. The dramatic ceiling of the Market Square Walkway, which crosses the Norfolk A hub along the long and bumpy Great Wagon Road that brought 18th-century settlers...Read more
SD fruit company
Black Hills Pioneer, May 17thAt one point, a tobacco company used the building, and there were likely other occupants in the warehouse through the 1960s. second level, two 34' diameter holes cut into the second level floor which in the past housed tubular ice cauldrons...Read more
A lesson learned from the averted LCBO strike
Canada.com, May 17thTheir love story goes from “womb to tomb, birth to earth,” from plum to prune, vintage warmth to cool earthy flavour. This one tingles in the nose and Bright berries give way to classic Bordeaux-like aromas of tobacco, tea and licorice. 91...Read more
Vintage businesses keep regulars coming back
Wicked Local, May 16thAt Brookline News & Gift, customers mainly come in for the variety of tobacco offerings, located at the front of the store. But the back of the gift shop is full of a staggering variety of items, from vintage greeting cards and tin toys, to board game...Read more
Signs of tobacco smoke still found in non-smoking rooms
CBS News, May 14thBlowing smoke: Vintage ads of doctors endorsing tobacco · Play Video. FDA reassessing cigarette warning labels. "(Nicotine residues and other chemical traces) don't stay in the smoking rooms," study author Georg Matt, a psychologist from San Diego...Read more