Calais, from the Fancy Bathers series (N187) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 1/2 in. (6.9 × 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
63.350.216.187.48
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Calais, from the Fancy Bathers series (N187)*, a diminutive commercial color lithograph produced by William S. Kimball & Company in 1889. This pocket-sized print (just 2 11/16 × 1 1/2 inches) captures the allure of women in a seaside bathing scene, evoking leisurely pleasures of coastal resorts like Calais, a French port town popular among Victorian-era travelers. Issued as part of a tobacco company's promotional series, it exemplifies the era's trade cards—collectible ephemera distributed to entice smokers and build brand loyalty. ...
About the Artist
William S. Kimball & Company
**William S. Kimball & Company**, a pioneering American tobacco manufacturer, was established in 1846 in Rochester, New York, by William S. Kimball and James C. Hart. The firm quickly grew into one of the city's largest employers, particularly of women, producing popular brands like Peerless chewing tobacco, Rigatta and Fireside smoking tobacco, and Vanity Fair cigarettes. Under Kimball's leadersh...