A show case of clove cigarette history

Aendra H. Medita, Contributor, Kudus, Central Java

Kudus is well-known for its soto, or chicken soup with bean sprouts, and most notably for its museum which showcases the history of rokok kretek -- clove-blended cigarettes.

Museum Kretek has become the pride of Kudus, the home of numerous large and small cigarette manufacturers.

The museum's exhibits illustrate the history of cigarettes, particularly the development of kretek cigarettes in Indonesia.

Cigarettes were first introduced, in the form of rolled tobacco, by sailors with Columbus' expedition in 1492. They were again brought to Banten, western Java, by the Dutch in 1596.

The first sovereign known to enjoy cigarettes was Sultan Agung Tirtayasa. In the 17th century, cigarette sales grew even more rapidly. Some thought the brisk business was due to a form of advertising -- a folk tale about a cigarette-loving royal couple, Roro Mendut and her husband Pronocitro.

Business was conducted in the traditional market. Every cigarette, (still rolled by hand), could first be lit by Roro Mendut, in a promotional bid. Cigarettes became an icon of luxury, exclusive and widely demanded.

Tumenggung (Regent), Wiroguno -- so the story goes -- became increasingly addicted to smoking and infatuated with Roro Mendut. Her great beauty made him desperate enough to kill Pronocitro in the hope of taking her as his own.

Cigarettes rose in popularity with the circulation of the tale. In 1896, Haj Djamhari blended tobacco with cloves in Kudus.

One day he had a bad cough and became short of breath, he flavored his cigarette with cloves and found it remediated his condition. The new formula was later called kretek -- imitating the sound of smoke being sucked -- and became known in Java via Djamhari's relatives and friends.

Kretek cigarette marketing and manufacturing entered a new phase. Local businessman, M. Nitisemito, established the first company to manufacture this type of cigarettes in Kudus, in 1905. The Dutch administration issued a license to the company in 1908, under the brand-name Bal Tiga (three balls).

Following the success of Nitisemito, other companies began the production of clove-cigarettes. In Kudus, 32 kretek cigarette home or small-scale industries were still productive in 1989. The capacity of these producers stood at less than a million cigarettes daily, as compared to large-scale companies' output of over 50 million.

Today the largest and most influential kretek cigarette industry in Kudus is Djarum, (founded by Oei Wie Gwan in 1951), followed by Nojorono (Tjoa Kang Hay, 1932), Sukun (1948) and Jambu Bol (1937). In East Java, major producers include Gudang Garam, Wismilak, Sampoerna and Bentoel.

Resulting from the pivotal position of Kudus in the history of kretek cigarettes, the Kretek Museum was constructed on a 4.5- hectare plot of land in Getas Pejaten village, Jati district, some three kilometers from Kudus.

The museum, built and managed by the Kudus Cigarette Manufacturers Association (PPRK), officially belongs to the regional administration. Nawawi Rusydi, from Jambu Bol and chairman of PPRK, said the museum aimed to preserve historical objects, particularly those related to the kretek cigarette's development.

"This is the history of the kretek cigarette and worthy of preservation. The museum exhibits the process of manufacturing in a concise way, which we hope will instill a spirit of entrepreneurship in young people in Kudus," he explained.

Nawawi Rusydi added that, apart from providing information on the history of cigarettes, the museum was also a tourist destination for those interested in history and science.

The initiative of Soepardjo Rustam, in his capacity as Central Java governor in 1980, this treasure trove of cigarette paraphernalia -- including miniatures of manufacturers and tobacco growers -- was inspired by his tour of Kudus to observe the cigarette factories.

Soeparjo saw potential, not only in terms of state revenue but also in the higher rate of employment due to cigarette production.

Half of the town's total area of 700,000 square meters was occupied by kretek cigarette industries.

Every day in Kudus, factory workers flock to cigarette industries early in the morning, and return home late in the afternoon. The significance of cigarette production in Kudus is not just displayed in the historic collection of its museum.

(The writer is a collector of cigarette packs and other cigarette paraphernalia.)