Artillery, Austria, 1886, from the Military Series (N224) issued by Kinney Tobacco Company to promote Sweet Caporal 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
Burdick 218, N224.305
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Artillery, Austria, 1886*, a tiny gem from Kinney Tobacco Company's Military Series (N224). Issued in 1888 to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes, this commercial color lithograph was one of many collectible cards tucked into cigarette packs, enticing smokers—especially men—with heroic depictions of global armed forces. Capturing Austrian artillery troops from a decade earlier, complete with swords and military regalia, it reflects the era's fascination with imperial might and nationalism amid rising European tensions. Printed via chr...
About the Artist
Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company · 1869–2011
**Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company (1869–2011)** Founded around 1869 by Francis Sherwood Kinney in New York City, the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company quickly rose to prominence in the burgeoning American cigarette industry. Francis, a pioneering tobacco manufacturer, experimented with hand-rolled cigarettes using blends of Turkish and Virginia tobacco, scaling to mass production by employing Europ...