'Black & White' Virginia Tobacco tin : Australian Comforts Fund

Round tobacco tin with separate lid. Lid design is divided into uneven quarters coloured black and cream; the black quarters contain a heraldic design associated with the Marcovitch Company, and the words 'SPECIAL CUT'. The main cream quarter is labelled 'Malcovitch / Black and White / READY RUBBED / VIRGINIA / TOBACCO', while the smaller quarter is fitted with a brass seal (now broken) for the tin. The circumference is labelled '2 OZ NETT WEIGHT WHEN PACKED'. A red ACF (Australian Comforts Fund) sticker has been placed over the name Marcovitch. Printed around the outside of the lid is ''MANUFACTURED BY GODFREY PHILLIPS (AUST) PTY LTD, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SUCCESSORS TO MARCOVITCH, LONDON. Printed on opposite sides of the outside of the main tin body on a background of gold is 'Black & White / READY RUBBED / VIRGINIA TOBACCO'; overprinted in red is 'GIFT FROM THE / AUSTRALIAN COMFORTS FUND, bordered on each side with the ACF logo of 'A.C.F.' within a red star. The tin is empty.

Standard style of cigarette tobacco packaging from the Second World War period, distributed in comforts packages supplied by the Australian Comforts Fund to Australian servicemen serving overseas. The Australian Comforts Fund (ACF) was first formed on 24 August 1916 from a number of State based organisations that had been individually formed at the beginning of the First World War to send comforts to the troops. Its motto was "Keep the Fit Man Fit", in order to not duplicate the work of the Red Cross. The ACF raised money through various activities to buy and make items and food that could be sent to the troops. They also ran small canteens near the front lines that served food supplies and provided other items such as primus stoves, clothes, sporting equipment, games, newspapers and magazines. With the close of the war, the ACF officially ceased to exist on 16 April 1920, only to be revived in 1939 with the outbreak of the Second World War. In addition to the Adoption Appeal, where civilians were asked to buy a stamp a day to cover the daily cost of comforts for one soldier, the ACF provided embarkation kits to troops containing items such as soap, clothes, tobacco, razors and barley sugar. The despatch of Christmas hampers to troops was also popular, and by the close of operations more than 1.5 million hampers had been despatched. The ACF officially closed on June 27, 1946.