This month at the National Library of Australia’s Asian Collections we have put together a display of Thai ephemera: late 19th and early 20th century advertisements and cigarette cards. The images of advertisements we display are reproduced from the books by Anake Nawikamune; the cigarette cards are originals which we acquired recently.

Anake Nawigamune was born in Songkhla province South of Thailand in 1953. He is known as a collector of ephemera in Thailand, and founder of р╕Ър╣Йр╕▓р╕Щр╕Юр╕┤р╕Юр╕┤р╕Шр╕ар╕▒р╕Ур╕Ср╣М or House of Museums. NLA’s collection includes over 100 books by Anake. His books are organised thematically and provide useful history, background and bibliography for ephemeral items. This type of publication makes a significant contribution to documenting society, and items we have on display give a unique view of Thai society in the decades leading up to the Second World War.

There are many images that we would like to share with New Mandala readers, so we will run a series of features over several weeks. Any comments on the content of the images (or the captions we have provided) will be most appreciated.

Quinine sale

This is the first ad to appear in a Thai language newspaper, the Bangkok Recorder (1845). It announces the availability of Quinine being marketed by Rev. Dan Beach Bradley

Matum powder drink

You even can take Bengal Quince powered drink mix to the temple for the monks (1928)

Ya Sasithonosot
Ya Sasithon Osot cures venereal diseases! (1924)

[This post is provided by the National Library of Australia as part of our Book Zone feature. For further information on the featured publications contact Saowapha Viravong at [email protected]]