Of all the cigar news I read this week, by far the most interesting was the announcement coming out of Cigar Cyclopedia of some lively bidding on eBay for a Sancho Panza “Branch of the Tree Cabinet” humidor. What it is, if you can’t tell from the picture, is a humidor that shaped like the trunk of a tree. It’s lined with sheets of cedar, and comes with completely removable cap-like lid that is emblazoned with the name of the manufacturer. In short, it’s exactly the sort of thing you’d be likely to see in Elvis Presley’s Jungle Room.

According to the report this humidor has been out of production for 30 years, but at one time was considerably less rare than it is today, having been used by a number of manufacturers:

This odd presentation wasn’t that uncommon prior to the nationalization of the Cuban cigar industry in 1960, having been used by Cifuentes y Cia. for both its Partagas and Ramon Allones brands. F. Palicio y Cia. also used this format for its Hoyo de Monterrey lines.

Following nationalization, at least three brands were offered using this “box.” The most unusual was for the Siboney brand (pictured above), of which very little is known and was not even reported to be in production until 1988. However, a specimen of the Branch of the Tree cabinet marked for Siboney Coronas was sold on eBay and apparently dates from around 1980, when it was acquired by the University of British Columbia for its History of Advertising archive. (Cigar Cyclopedia)

Being the inquisitive person I am, it wasn’t enough to read this article and move on. I decided to do a bit of snooping around. It didn’t take me too long to find the now closed auction for this quirky humidor. I was kind of surprised that this humidor only went for $459.67. Heck, there are plenty of humidors out there selling for that much or more that are both common and lacking historical significance. And then I noticed something interesting that wasn’t included in the news item.

See anything interesting here? Look again…

The buyer, “perelmanco”. Wait one second. Perelman Co.? As in Richard Perelman, author of the incredibly handy Cigar Cyclopedia book and website? I think so. No wonder this made headlines in their most recent newsletter! All I can say is, nice pick-up Perelman & Co! (I hope you have the shag carpet and leopard prints required to house such an eccentric part of cigar history!)

Going forward, it’s safe to say that if you see “perelmanco” bidding on something cigar related you’re selling on eBay, you just might be making news.

Speaking of Sancho Panza, that’s a name that’s been mentioned a lot frequently, particularly in the YQMA segments whenever good budget smokes come up. Why not take a look at some Sancho Panza reviews while we’re on the topic?

• Walt on the Sancho Panza Valiente.
• Jerry takes on both the Double Maduro and the Extra Fuerte in a single review.
• Walt checks out the Double Maduro.