Card Number 167, Elain Caungfor, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-5) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cameo Cigarettes
1880s
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 3/8 in. (6.8 × 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
63.350.208.145.5.18
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Card Number 167,ain Caungfor*, the Actors and Actresses series (N145-5). Issued by W. Duke, Sons & Co. in 1880s to their Cameo Cigarettes, this albumen photograph captures the allure of a female actress in a formal portrait pose. Measuring just 2 11/16 × 1 3/8 inches, was designed as collectible ephemera, tucked into cigarette packs to entice smokers and spark a collecting craze among enthusiasts. The medium—an albumen print, coated with egg whites for its signature warm tones and sharp detail—was the gold standard for photography ...
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...