Pre-War Cards

‘It’s In The Details’

1920s Nestle Sports Stamps (Series 7) Set Overview

These intriguing cards were offered in Nestle products in France. Like some other releases, many series’ make up the overall set. These are called stamps but are more like album cards. They are thin and could be affixed into books but are a little different from the traditional postage stamps we know of today.

In all, Nestle created numerous series’ of stamps in the 1920s and 1930s, and while most picture non-sports subjects, some sports series’ were included.

This issue was a sports series. They are believed to be printed in the 1920s but I have not been able to confirm a definitive date for them as of yet. Offered in France, the text on them is printed in French. This particular series was Series No. 7 in the overall set.

The cards/stamps featured full color cartoon images of athletes participating in a number of sports. The most popular ones to American collectors are generally the ones featuring boxing, tennis, wrestling, and soccer. The stamps have a white border as well as the Nestle’s name at the bottom in a black box. These are different from other series’ Nestle created as those had a different look.

The stamps were designed to be affixed into albums and, as expected, some were. Today, you will find these stamps sometimes with the original backs if they were not mounted into the books or ones that were will often have residue or even the album pages stuck to them. Like some other international issues, these were less traditional cards that were much thinner than most gum and candy issues here. They are paper thin and similar to the 1932 Sanella/Astra margarine multi-sport set, but smaller.

1920s Nestle Sports Stamps (Series 7) Checklist

1. Boxing
2. Yachting
3. Equestrian
4. Tennis
5. Swimming
6. Soccer
7. Skiing
8. Fencing
9. Rifle Shooting
10. Mountain Climbing
11. Sled Riding
12. Wrestling