Chevalier E. Ginistrelli, from the Racing Colors of the World series (N22b) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes
1888
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
63.350.201.22.101
Tags
Art Historical Context
In 1888, the pioneering tobacco firm Allen & Ginter issued the *Racing Colors of the World* series (N22b), a set of vibrant chromolithographed trade cards tucked into cigarette packs to captivate collectors and boost brand loyalty. This petite card, measuring just 2¾ x 1½ inches, spotlights *Chevalier E. Ginistrelli*, showcasing jockey racing silks amid the era's obsession with horse racing—a global sport blending aristocracy, gambling, and spectacle. These cards were early marketing genius, precursors to modern trading cards, and part of the explosive 19th-century ephemera boom. Chromolithog...
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...