Life — September 25, 1919 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Murad Turkish Cigarettes Advertisement This is a **cigarette advertisement**, not political satire. It promotes Murad brand Turkish cigarettes, emphasizing "100% pure Turkish" tobacco as "the world's most famous tobacco for cigarettes." The imagery features two stylized figures in exotic Oriental dress and jewelry, reflecting early 20th-century Western stereotypes about the "exotic East." The ornate patterns and jeweled accessories were designed to evoke luxury and foreign sophistication—common marketing tactics of the era. The phrase "Judge for Yourself" invites consumers to try the product. A product package is shown at lower right, priced at 20¢. This represents typical vintage advertising that weaponized Orientalist imagery to sell consumer goods to American audiences.