One Friday in 2008, I was informed by Pashi Efter that “Hameshuga" (“The Nutter”) is offering for sale, in the antiques market in Dizengoff Circle, a “Kedem” cigarette-cards Album designed by Shamir Brothers. The cards bore pictures of famous Jews and were inserted in the cigarette packs. Smokers were encouraged to collect them in the album.

“Hameshuga" demanded NIS 150 which I declined. “How much would you be willing to pay?” Asedk Pashi, and I said 90 to a 100. On Monday I called Peshi and offered to pay 50 NIS to be able to scan the album. Pashi replied: “No need I bought the album for you for NIS 100". I transferred it to Shenkar. The album does not indicate its publishing date. I set the date according to the biographies of two of the people on the cards. Huberman – in the album it stated that he broke his arm in 1938 and Jabotinsky who was described as an active man (i.e. still alive). From Wikipedia I found that Jabotinsky died in 1940. I concluded, therefore, that the album must have been published in 1939 or early 1940.

Two weeks later I met Professor David Vital at Coffee Bean in Ramat Aviv Gimmel. I asked him to put me on his mailing list. He mailed me his article "Schooldays in Palestine: A Memoir". In the article he describes how this album caused him trouble at his school "Ahad Ha'am" to which he transferred at his request from “Herzliya Gymnasium”. The school was left leaning politically (socialist). The album contained a picture of David Vital's father who was a deputy of Jabotinsky and the children picked on him for being the son of a right wing Revisionist. I did not find the father's image in the edition I purchased.

Two months later I found an ad in the “Palestine Post” publishing the album. The article and the ad are now in Shenkar's digital archive. The album is in my office.

Another album is a stamp album from Bejarano Brothers. I found Bejarano ads from the early 40s advertising cigarettes with stamps in the packs. Towards the end of the campaign they published an ad with a stamp album into which smokers of Bejarano cigarettes could paste the collected stamps. One look at the illustration of the album reminded me of my own childhood stamp collection. I gave my album to someone , but I do not remember who. I checked with the Philatelic Association - they knew nothing about such an album. I asked antiques market traders at Dizengoff Circle- no one heard about it.

In November 2010 Mickey Engel, a cigarette pack collector, wrote to me: "Call me. I have amazing news." I called and was told by Mickey that his colleague Uri Meirav from Carmiel purchased a Bejerano stamp album. What joy! I phoned him and he readily agreed to my request to scan the album. The scan arrived the next day. And, indeed, it was my childhood stamp album. I clearly remember that the cover was decorated with a grey and blue or burgundy illustration and text. The colour scan showed it to be grey and blue.

In August 2010, I learned about another Bejarano album designed by Shamir Brothers: “National Flags”. Itamar Levy, owner of “Itamar Bookstore” in Zichron Yaakov, told me that he sold such an album to a lady collector. I asked him to help me contact her but he declined saying that she did not want him to give out her name and address. In September I found a Bejarano brothers newspaper ad in "Davar" of March or April 1939 advertising the “National Flags” album. (I missed that ad when I searched for ads in “Davar” three years previously and when I went through the newspaper "Haaretz" later).

Hedi Or, designer and collector, sent a query to his mailing list at the end of June 2012: “I have a “Kedem” album of “National Flags” and the Dutch flag is missing”. I asked him to send me a scan the album's cover and of the page with the credit to Shamir Brothers. He sent these to me plus four other pages that included illustrations of major cities from around the world accompanied by coins and stamps. The scan of the cover shows a reflection of the flash of the camera or light disturbance from his scanner. I asked him to rescan the cover and he said I should direct my complaint to the designers who designed a very dark cover. I replied that I plan to meet them in a few and I'll forward the complaint to them.

Yoram Shamir 2008