Murad (cigarette)

Turkish tobacco is sun-cured, which makes it more aromatic and, like flue-cured tobacco, more acidic than air- or smoke-cured tobacco, thus more suitable for cigarette production.^[1]

In the early 1900s, manufactures of Turkish cigarettes tripled their sales and became legitimate competitors to leading brands.

The New York-based Greek tobacconist Soterios Anargyros produced the hand-rolled Murad cigarettes, made of pure Turkish tobacco.^[2]

Lorillard acquired the Murad brand in 1911 through the dissolution of the Cigarette Trust, explaining the high quality of the Murad advertisements in the following years.^[3]

Murad referenced the Oriental roots of their Turkish tobacco blends through pack art and advertising images.^[4] Surely one of the most gorgeously over-the-top ad campaigns for any cigarette was the long-running series for Murad brand made by Rea Irvin.

Murad Cigarettes issued a series of cigarette cards featuring the university colors, pennants, and seals of various universities and colleges around 1910. Some cards also featured a vignette of a scene, some sporting like baseball, football, or golf, but others with just general scenes. Tobacco cards were often included in packs of cigarettes until the mid-twentieth century and served to stiffen the cigarette packages, advertise, and encourage product loyalty with the collectible cards.