Advertisement for Philadelphia Sunday Press: Jan. 5, 1896
Medium
Lithograph
Dimensions
Plate: 20 5/8 × 13 5/8 in. (52.4 × 34.6 cm) Sheet: 21 7/8 × 15 1/2 in. (55.6 × 39.4 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, The Lauder Foundation, Leonard and Judy Lauder Fund Gift, 2015
Accession Number
2015.468
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 1890s American advertising with *Advertisement for Philadelphia Sunday Press: Jan. 5, 1896*, a striking lithograph by George Reiter. Created as a promotional poster for the Philadelphia Sunday Press, this work captures the bustling energy of late Gilded Age print culture, when newspapers vied for readers with eye-catching Sunday editions filled with comics, stories, and news. Brill, a skilled Philadelphia-based lithographer, employed this versatile printmaking technique—drawing directly on limestone with greasy crayon to produce detailed, reproducible images—to craft posters that could be mass-produced affordably. At 20 5/8 × 13 5/8 inches on the plate, the piece exemplifies the era's bold graphic style, blending typography and imagery to entice passersby. Acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2015 through the Lauder Foundation, it highlights the rising artistry of commercial posters amid the chromolithography boom. This lithograph offers a window into urban life, reflecting how newspapers like the Sunday Press fueled public discourse and entertainment. Its preservation underscores the cultural value of ephemera—once discarded ads now cherished as snapshots of history.
About the Artist
George Reiter Brill · 1867–1918
American, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1867–1918 Florida