Card Number 173, Mrs. Fanny Rice, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-2) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes
1880s
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 5/8 × 1 7/16 in. (6.6 × 3.7 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
63.350.207.145.2.305
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century American theater with *Card Number 173, Mrs. Fanny Rice*, a charming albumen photograph from the Actors and Actresses series (145-2). Issued W. Duke, Sons & Co. in the 1880s to promote their Cut Cigarettes, this portrait (just 2 5/8 × 1 7/16 inches) captures the poised elegance of actress Mrs. Fanny Rice, of many stage stars featured in these collectible cards. Albumen prints, the dominant photographic medium of the era, lent these ephemera their rich, warm tones and fine detail, making even pocket-sized images feel intimate and lifelike. Tobacco co...
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...