Name/Title
Toothpaste tube (ration/libreta toothpaste)Entry/Object ID
2025.1.180Description
A collapsible toothpaste tube of soft silver-colored metal (aluminum or lead alloy), with a white plastic screw cap on a threaded neck and a folded/crimped seam at the base. No brand, lettering, ingredients, or graphics are present on the surface — a bare metal tube. The form is the standard collapsible dentifrice tube.Use
In the Arús Caraballo householdCollection
The Cabrera Arús family collectionMade/Created
Manufacturer
MINILPlace
Country
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
Per the donor's note, this tube may have been produced after 1990, but it is identical to the toothpaste sold through the ration card (libreta) in the 1980s and probably earlier. The bare, unlettered aluminum tube was used both before and during the 1990s Período Especial, so the object cannot be confirmed within the 1959–1990 manufacture range and may lie just outside it.Material
aluminum, PlasticRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Gertrudis Caraballo GálvezNotes
ownerPerson or Organization
MINILNotes
producerRelated Places
Place
City
HavanaCountry
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
acquisition, ownershipResearch Notes
Notes
A Cuban dentifrice tube of the type distributed through the libreta (ration book). The classic ration brand was "Perla" (other brands produced in CUba were Dentex, Denti-Fresh).Notes
The bare, unlettered aluminum tube was characteristic of both the pre-1990 ration product and the 1990s Período Especial version (famously sold in "an aluminum tube with no letters or colors," with a gritty, zeolite-extended formula). Because the form persisted across the 1990 boundary, and per the donor's own caveat, this tube cannot be confirmed in-range and may post-date 1990. Created By
María A. Cabrera ArúsCreate Date
March 31, 2022Updated By
María A. Cabrera ArúsUpdate Date
June 16, 2026