Andrew Jackson, from the series Great Americans (N76) for Duke brand cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 × 1 1/2 in. (7 × 3.8 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
63.350.204.76.27
Tags
Art Historical Context
This petite chromolithograph, titled *Andrew Jackson, from the series Great Americans (N76)*, was produced in 1888 by W. Duke, Sons & Co., a leading American tobacco firm. Measuring just 2¾ × 1½ inches, it captures the stern visage of the seventh U.S. president and war hero in vivid color, designed as a collectible insert for Duke brand cigarette packs. Part of a popular series honoring notable figures, these cards turned everyday smoking into a gateway for history buffs and traders. Chromolithography, the era's go-to technique for affordable, eye-catching prints, allowed mass production of t...
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...