See the roughly contemporary Cashay tampon,
box, instructions. (Procter & Gamble donation, 2001), and
Dale (U.S.A., 1930s?-1940s?) Tampons, box, instructions.
(Procter & Gamble donation, 2001)
And, of course, the first Tampax AND - special
for you! - the American fax tampon,
from the early 1930s, which also came in bags.
 
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Lotus tampon, U.S.A., late 1930s-early 1940s?
Bag and Tampon
I don't know how well the tampon absorbed the menstrual discharge if
it didn't swell. Maybe it just didn't swell much. Note that it had
no insertion tube like many tampons of the time (for example, Fibs);
Tampax invented that and patented
it.
I can't pinpoint the date of this tampon but Consumer Reports of September,
1945, evaluated its sister product Lotus De Luxe (Fluff Style) sanitary
napkin, so Lotus existed at that time in one form. (Lotus De Luxe rated
an "acceptable" mark along with familiar names like Kotex and
Modess.) I suspect it existed at least in the late 1930s because of some
wording on the folder in the box.
The box's color is close to Kotex blue, common for the early menstrual
products, which the history of Procter & Gamble called hospital blue;
Dr. Lillian Gilbreth didn't like it, as she reported
to Johnson & Johnson in 1927.
The typeface almost throughout the product looks art déco to
me, appropriate for the late 1930s.
The Procter & Gamble Company kindly donated this tampon along
with dozens of other early American menstrual devices.
Harry Finley created the scans.
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The box contains two bags, above, one of which was opened
and missing two tampons when P&G gave it to me. The early tampons fax and Sa-tips
also came in bags within a box.
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The tampon plug measures about 2.25" x 0.75" in diameter (about
5.6 x 2 cm). The string penetrates one side of the flat end and emerges
to wrap around the plug (right side, below, and the end view below that).
It looks as if it's made of coils of cotton. The plug emerged from its bag
with the string wrapped as below.
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The string, below, stretches 6" (about 15.3 cm).
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END Box - folder -
See the roughly contemporary Cashay and Dale tampons, and very early Tampax
and fax.
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