This vintage cigarette card features Hyderabad House, a landmark in Delhi, produced by the Birmingham-based R & J Hill cigarette company. Known popularly as “Hills,” the company had a sub-brand called “Sunripe and Spinet Oval” which carried pictures of different imperial spaces. This card dates back to the 1930s, just after the inauguration of “New” Delhi as the capital of British India.
Why a cigarette card, you might ask? In the 1930s, cigarette cards were all the rage in Britain. With smoking being incredibly popular at the time, companies like Hills used these cards to promote their brands, making them collectible and a powerful marketing tool. As part of their “Views of Interest” series, Hills issued cards featuring notable landmarks and people from across the British Empire.
One such notable was the owner of Hyderabad House, the Nizam. Part of a small group of illustrious princes invited to construct palaces or ‘houses’ in Delhi after the inauguration of the ‘New’ city, the Nizam of Hyderabad was a considerable landholder and also the richest man in the world at the time. The picture on the obverse of the cigarette card (below) presents some background information on this and lionises the ‘new’ palaces in Delhi being built by the princes of India under the aegis of the British Empire.
That’s all for this week! See you next Friday for more insights into Delhi’s history.
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