this topic is about 2 KIND OF ALBUMS containing cards

• NO scrapalbums : cut out pictures and/or text from newspapers, magazines
• NO family photo albums
• NO printed photographs, folders brochures

only

• ADVERTISING  ALBUMS

1. mentioning the name of  company, most of the times on vivid frontpage
2. explicit accompanying text about the company, purpose of edition
3. eventualy numbering for each chromo, vignette, card ( whatever the form : round, diecut, square or rectangular ) spared space for that under the insert angles or under the special "frame" to glue cards in specific order
4. cards normaly contain some information regarding the album on front or reverse, eventualy title, number and mainly explicative text about front of picture
5. sometimes NONE of these is printed on the cards, but sadly enough not always
6. mostly thin albums, less than 500 cards ( only few exceptions exist )
7. from 1910 to 1980 every respected company in the food industry distributed their advertising cards in the wrapper of the product and kids had to send the cards to receive them back in an album..
8. 90% of choclate and biscuit Manufactories edited many albums
9. some albums contain no texts and were produced with insert holes to collect all editions.  a good example is the Liebig Meat extractCompany; they distributed more than a thousand sets ... and albums can contain 50 to 100 ( some 200 sets albums exists too ).  Since sets were changing form during 100 years, some cannot be inserted because insert holes are to small ... then people took a scissor and cut the borders from the card ... shame on those !
10. topical themes used to promote their candies, bars, boxes were in order of popularity : children stories, sports, cinema stars, animals, automobiles, history and geography

• ALBUMS DE COLLECTION

1. very thick albums, mostly minumum 4 to 10 kilos ( few exceptions exist, although once I had one of 40 kilos )
2. 30cm to 40cm were most of these albums, containing 100 to 300 pages, each page with at least 6 cards ( mostly a set ) nicely framed and decorated with diecut flowers, dressed animals, nice playing children ... sometimes as big as a whole page
3. in these albums everything was glued down, so sometimes no advertising can be seen if the card has only text on reverse
4. mostly cards have advertising on front : good examples are the complete sets of Liebig's, Suchard, Cibils, Arbucle, Kemmerich, Guérin boutron, Au Bon Marché
5. sometimes such albums were completed by people only residing in one city and thus some such albums only contain cards from one product

 Albert.vandenbosch , collector from such albums and trade cards

my store at Ebay

Also there is a difference between trading cards ( you can buy them ) and the pure collecting type of cards : trade cards, which were found FREE in all kind of products and were never for sale by manufactor !