See early tampons Dale, Wix and B-ettes and a bunch of other earlier ones.
See a Modess pad ad from 1928 - Compare the American "Modess . . . . because" ads, the French Modess, and the German "Freedom" (Kimberly-Clark) for teens.
See a San-Nap-Pak ad from 1945 in American Girl, the Girl Scout magazine, and a box of San-Nap-Pak tampons
See a Modess True or False? ad in The American Girl magazine, January 1947, and actress Carol Lynley in "How Shall I Tell My Daughter" booklet ad (1955) - Modess . . . . because ads (many dates).
CONTRIBUTE to Humor, Words and expressions about menstruation and Would you stop menstruating if you could?
Some MUM site links: homepage | MUM address & What does MUM mean? | e-mail the museum | privacy on this site | who runs this museum?? |
Amazing women! | the art of menstruation | artists (non-menstrual) | asbestos | belts | bidets | founder bio | Bly, Nellie | MUM board | books: menstruation and menopause (and reviews) | cats | company booklets for girls (mostly) directory | contraception and religion | costumes | menstrual cups | cup usage | dispensers | douches, pain, sprays | essay directory | extraction | facts-of-life booklets for girls | famous women in menstrual hygiene ads | FAQ | founder/director biography | gynecological topics by Dr. Soucasaux | humor | huts | links | masturbation | media coverage of MUM | menarche booklets for girls and parents | miscellaneous | museum future | Norwegian menstruation exhibit | odor | olor | pad directory | patent medicine | poetry directory | products, current | puberty booklets for girls and parents | religion | Religión y menstruación | your remedies for menstrual discomfort | menstrual products safety | science | Seguridad de productos para la menstruación | shame | slapping, menstrual | sponges | synchrony | tampon directory | early tampons | teen ads directory | tour of the former museum (video) | underpants & panties directory | videos, films directory | Words and expressions about menstruation | Would you stop menstruating if you could? | What did women do about menstruation in the past? | washable pads
Leer la versión en español de los siguientes temas: Anticoncepción y religión, Breve reseña - Olor - Religión y menstruación - Seguridad de productos para la menstruación.

Lil-lets menstrual tampons (South Africa, 1978)
Box

Women can buy Lil-lets in many countries, just like Tampax. But it has no insertion device, just like the first commercial tampons (Wix, for example), and many later ones (Tampax 's claim to fame is the invention of the applicator).

In 1997 Tambrands gave the box to this museum as part of an amazing gift of 450 boxes of tampons dating to the founding of the Tampax company, 1936, plus hundreds of other items.

See the instructions.
See an ad for the U.K. mini version, 1976-77 & ad for U.K. from 1988

 
The other side of the box duplicates this side, except that the English word "tampons" replaces the Afrikaans "tamponne."
Manufacturers have long linked flowers with their menstrual products (for example, here), probably to make them seem "dainty" and "feminine," in the sense of being delicate, good-smelling, etc., in other words qualities few people associate with menstruating. Compare that to the colors and beautiful clouds, etc., often seen printed on toilet-paper wrapping, especially in America.
Using a reddish color on menstrual packaging as it is above is rare in the U.S.A., where one's thoughts would be turned to higher things - flowers, maybe.

 
The diameter of the tampon is 0.5", about 1.25 cm. 
See the instructions. - Lil-lets ad from the United Kingdom (1988) - Tampon directory - Early tampons

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