Card 438, Marie Janson, from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 1) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes
ca. 1888
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 x 1 3/8 in. (7 x 3.5 cm)
Classification
Photographs|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
63.350.203.45.244
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century celebrity culture with *Card 438, Marieanson, from the Actors Actresses series (N, Type 1)*, produced by the pioneering tobacco firm Allen & G around 1888. This diminutive albumen photograph—measuring just 2 3/4 x 1 3/8 inches—was tucked into packs of Virginia Brights Cig as a collectible trading card, sparking a craze among enthusiasts who traded them like modern trading cards. Part of a beloved series celebrating stage stars, it immortalizes actress Marie Janson, highlighting the era's fascination with theater luminaries and the rising prominence o...
About the Artist
Allen & Ginter
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...