A romantic pictorial celebration of the brand, often with much gold and embossing. Vistas typically feature medals that the brand has won, the coats of arms of former royal patrons, historical images and notes about the brand.

The decorative strip that seals the the lid’s hinge.

A rectangular or oval seal on the short side of the box.

The protective leaf of paper inside the box, decorated to complement the Vista.

Cuba’s term for the cigar band. The common term elsewhere is la vitola (hence ‘vitolfilia’ for cigar-band collecting) but this is a word with other meanings in Cuba. A particular size and shape of Habano is also a vitola.

The coloured strip on the long sides, often showing the brand.

The coloured strip on the short sides of the box, often showing the size name.

A seal fixed over the nail that secures the lid of some boxes.

They are: ▪ ENE (Enero) January ▪ FEB (Febrero) Frebruary ▪ MAR (Marzo) March ▪ ABR (Abril) April ▪ MAY (Mayo) May ▪ JUN (Junio) June ▪ JUL (Julio) July ▪ AGO (Agosto) August ▪ SEP (Septiembre) September ▪ OCT (Octubre) October ▪ NOV (Noviembre) November ▪ DIC (Diciembre) December

There are two ink-stamps on the bottoms of Habanos boxes. One is a secret code that tells the industry which factory made the cigars. The other is the month and year when they were boxed.