Brown Thrasher, from the Song Birds of the World series (N42) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 7/8 x 3 1/4 in. (7.3 x 8.3 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
63.350.202.42.11
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delightful chromolithograph of a Brown Thrasher is a gem from the *Song Birds of the World* series (N42), by the pioneering tobacco company Allen & Ginter in 1890. Produced in collaboration with the Philadelphia lithography firm George S. Harris & Sons, these tiny cards—measuring just 2⅞ × 3¼ inches—were tucked into cigarette packs as promotional inserts, sparking a collecting craze among Victorians fascinated by natural history. The Brown Thrasher, a bold North American songbird known for its spotted breast and mimicry calls, exemplifies the era's ornithological enthusiasm, blending educ...
About the Artist
Allen & Ginter|George S. Harris & Sons
Allen & Ginter, the pioneering American tobacco firm based in Richmond, Virginia, emerged around 1880 from the partnership of John F. Allen and Lewis Ginter, evolving from Allen's earlier John F. Allen & Company. Allen retired in 1882, succeeded by John Pope, yet the brand endured under Ginter's leadership, employing over 1,100 workers—mostly women—for hand-rolled cigarettes by 1886. Ginter, a Dut...