Selling Luxury: The Rise of the Egyptian Cigarette and the Transformation of the Egyptian Tobacco Market, 1850-1914

The study of the establishment of a market for luxury cigarettes reflects a unique period of economic development in Egypt in which the evolution of the market closely followed the introduction of colonial rule, coupled with a quick process of globalization that further linked Egypt to world markets. In this environment, the Egyptian cigarette was also a telling exception to the familiar story of "division of labor" between center and periphery, because cigarettes produced in Egypt were successfully exported abroad. Further, Egyptian and Turkish cigarettes promoted consumption of cigarettes globally and influenced the kind of tobacco used in production of cigarettes worldwide.