Abdul Hamid, Sultan of Turkey, from the Rulers, Flags, and Coats of Arms series (N126-1) issued by W. Duke, Sons & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 1/2 × 4 5/16 in. (6.4 × 11 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ephemera
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick
Accession Number
63.350.206.126.48
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century ephemera with this petite chromolithograph from W. Duke, Sons &.'s "Rulers, Flags, Coats of Arms" (N126-1). Issued in 1888, it portrays Abdul Hamid II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, regal symbols like flags and coats of arms. Measuring just 2½ × 4⅜ inches, this trade card was tucked into cigarette packs as a clever marketing ploy by the American tobacco giant, enticing collectors with glimpses of global power. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized commercial printing by layering vibrant colors through multiple lithographic stones, makin...
About the Artist
W. Duke, Sons & Co. · 1870–1920
**W. Duke, Sons & Co.: Pioneers of Chromolithographic Trade Card Art** W. Duke, Sons & Co., an American tobacco manufacturer, emerged from the entrepreneurial vision of Washington Duke (1820–1905) and his sons in Durham, North Carolina. After the Civil War, Washington abandoned farming in 1874 to join his eldest son, Brodie L. Duke, in the burgeoning tobacco trade, establishing a factory that for...