How a TV valve led to a lifetime’s hobby

Exhibitor : Jerry Bell

The year was 1948. It was a remarkable year. Firstly, the snow in winter in Southern England lay so thick on the ground that it was not possible to go to school for a whole two weeks. Bliss! Secondly, the harsh winter was followed by the sort of summer normally only dreamt about. Day after day of sun shining out of cloudless blue skies, while Compton and Edrich plundered the hapless South African attack on the cricket field for hundreds of runs.

More importantly, it was the year that I acquired my first meaningful label collection.  Like many children in the age before TV and mobile phones, I collected anything I could lay my hands on: stamps, matchbox labels, cheese labels, cigarette packets, football cards, cigarette cards etc, etc. One of my cousins was given a matchbox label collection assembled in India before WWI. I am not sure whether he collected labels or not, but at that stage he was more interested in building a TV set from scratch, and was in desperate need of a valve, I think it was. It cost 15 shillings (£35 today) and somehow I managed to scrape this together, and became the proud owner of that collection, which I still have today, every single one of them.

Whilst most of the labels are exactly what one would expect to find in a collection made in India at that time, nearly all Austria and Sweden, with, perhaps a few Japanese, it was remarkable for the number of used packet labels it contained, most of which are still in pretty good condition, although one must wonder at the thinking that sent “Grizzly” and “Condor” labels to India at that time!

In the past, when boxes of matches were packed in dozen packets and/or gross boxes, a larger size version of the box label was used to adhere to the outside of the packet/carton so that the contents could be readily identified. Few survived, as the paper wrapping would have been torn off the packets and disposed of, which is why used packet labels, particularly old ones, are very hard to find in good condition. There are plenty of mint ones around, which would suggest that manufacturers overestimated quantities when ordering these labels.

Some of the labels from that first collection are illustrated here. These labels also gave me some local knowledge from afar. On my first visit to India some 40 years ago, I was able to impress my hosts in New Delhi as we drove around by exclaiming “Wow. There’s the Kutub Minar”. Needless to say, I wasn’t up to climbing it.

Favourite labels, page 1

Favourite labels, page 2

Favourite labels, page 3

Favourite labels, page 4

Click here to return to the Exhibition Catalogue.