Vintage Book - Collection of British & European Matchbox Tops/Labels For Sale

An extreme rarity, such that I have never seen before on (of this vintage and with this presentation) - 242 genuine matchbox tops - most of which would be unobtainable in 2026.
This collection was started by my maternal grandmother (who died several months before I was born) in the mid nineteen thirties My mother added to it as a teenager in the late thirties and forties and I recall my late father pasting in his contributions in the fifties. I added a few myself in the late fifties and early sixties. I have looked after this book with great care in the six decades since, getting it out every few years to look at the labels once again. You may think scanning through the pages \' Oh there\'s a few double-ups\" but if you look closely, you will usually see a few subtle differences. Unlike stamp collectors who are known as philatelists - collectors of matchbox tops are classified as phillumenists. It is a very specialized collecting hobby. I wish I had kept it up in Australia and my years in the US - but of course....who uses matches these days?
So to get back to this listing, this is an unrepeatable opportunity for someone to expand on their collection of unusual items with a book that is in phenomenal condition for a near century-old hard-cover scrap book. It will sell to someone with appreciation of times past. If anything could be said to be a time-capsule - this is it. The work of two to three generations back should not be understated or under-valued. It is hardly something I am prepared to sale starting at $5. The price asked is very reasonable all things considered - it\'s not that you can measure its value against a dozen other similar listings!
I should also make the point - however much any prospective buyer would prefer these matchbox labels were \"hinged\" rather than glued - that simply isn\'t what people usually did with these things that long ago. I have seen a few vintage collections of UK and Euro matchbox labels here on - and clearly they have been glued also. Other people I knew in the fifties who had similar collections all glued them in. Just something you have to live with if you want this collection. I don\'t see that it particularly detracts from its worth - its a separate collection in a superb vintage album - that\'s where they need to stay - glued! They\'re not stamps! Sure, you can add to them - there\'s plenty of space - and hinged...if that\'s your thing, but you can\'t add THESE to anything else and besides - they belong in this book!