Collecting match books and matchbox labels is almost as popular, and just as much fun, as philately. A person that collects them is known as a phillumenist.
There’s a fascinating history about the development of safety match technology – and the banning of white phosphorus (a hugely dangerous chemical) as an ingredient in their manufacture.
The designs of matchbox labels can point to their age and era of production.
There are safety matches (that can only be lit by striking on a specific surface), impregnated (with paraffin) safety matches, long matches and cooks’ matches. In the past, matches were usually ‘foreign’; manufactured in Sweden, Finland, Italy, Belgium and Czechoslovakia.
There was a time when every bar and restaurant supplied customers with their branded matches. Free advertising for them and a free souvenir for you! With the advent of smoking bans around the world, they’ve become a thing of the past.
Matches, matchboxes and matchbooks are still very popular, however; they’re an essential accessory for owners of wood-burning stoves and ranges and fans of room candles.
