Caricatured figure from the Congo, 2 Francs, from the series Coins of All Nations (N72, variation 2) for Duke brand cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 x 1 1/2 in. (7 x 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
63.350.204.72.25
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with this diminutive gem: a commercial color lithograph from 1889, produced by W. Duke, Sons & Co. Titled *Caricatured figure from the Congo, 2 Francs*, it belongs to the *Coins of All Nations* series (N72, variation 2), small inserts tucked into Duke brand cigarette packs. At just 2¾ x 1½ inches, these ephemera cards were collectibles designed to boost sales amid fierce tobacco industry competition, sparking a craze for trading cards that endures today. Lithography's magic shines here, enabling vivid, mass-produced color on a tiny scale...
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...