c. 1930 Cigarette Card "The Hon. Mrs. Bruce at Montlhery, 1929"

c. 1930 Cigarette Card "The Hon. Mrs. Bruce at Montlhery, 1929" is a vintage Cigarette Cards artifact by W.D. & H.O. Wills (Imperial Tobacco Co. of Great Britain & Ireland, Ltd.) from 1930, preserved in The Record Institute Ephemera Archive.

Category: Cigarette Cards

Brand: W.D. & H.O. Wills (Imperial Tobacco Co. of Great Britain & Ireland, Ltd.)

Year: 1930

Rarity Class: B

Last updated: August 8, 2026

This striking W.D. & H.O. Wills cigarette card from the "Speed" series immortalizes the Hon. Mrs. Victor Bruce and her grueling 24-hour record-breaking run at Montlhéry in 1929. Highlighting a female driver commanding a massive, supercharged Bentley, this small piece of ephemera stands as a powerful testament to the shattering of both mechanical limits and gender barriers in interwar British motorsport.

Quick Read

Subject: Commemorates the 1929 24-hour speed record set by the Hon. Mrs. Victor Bruce at the Montlhéry autodrome. Machine: Explicitly identifies her vehicle as a Bentley with a "super-charged four-cylinder engine of 4,386 c.c." Stats: Records an astonishing average speed of 89.57 m.p.h. over 24 hours, beating the international record for cars under 5,000 c.c. Series: Card No. 26 in the 50-card "Sp

Summary

This striking W.D. & H.O. Wills cigarette card from the "Speed" series immortalizes the Hon. Mrs. Victor Bruce and her grueling 24-hour record-breaking run at Montlhéry in 1929. Highlighting a female driver commanding a massive, supercharged Bentley, this small piece of ephemera stands as a powerful testament to the shattering of both mechanical limits and gender barriers in interwar British motor

A vintage rectangular cigarette trading card, oriented horizontally. The front features a color halftone illustration of a dark green vintage open-top race car (bearing the stark white number 5) driving rapidly to the right, piloted by a driver in a white cap and reddish-brown jacket. A blurred, impressionistic light-colored track forms the background, conveying motion. Black text at the top reads "WILLS'S CIGARETTES." and at the bottom "THE HON. MRS. BRUCE AT MONTLHERY, 1929." The reverse features black typography on a beige background, with a dark banner reading "Wills for Quality / SPEED" at the top. The text details the June 1929 record-breaking 24-hour run of the Hon. Mrs. Victor Bruce in a super-charged 4,386 c.c. Bentley at Montlhéry, issued by W.D. & H.O. Wills, Imperial Tobacco Co.