Card Number 199, Fanny Davenport, 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
63.350.207.145.2.35
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century celebrity culture with *Card Number 199, Fanny Davenport*, a charming albumen photograph from the Actors and Actresses series (145-2). Issued the 1880s by W. Duke, Sons & Co. to promote their Cross Cut Cig, this tiny portrait (just 2 5/8 × 1 7/16 inches) captures the poised elegance of Fanny Davenport, celebrated American actress known for her dramatic roles on stage. Albumen prints, the most popular photographic medium of the era, were made by coating paper with egg whites to create a glossy surface for sharp, detailed silver-based images. These ca...
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...