Clara St. Maur, from the Actresses series (N245) issued by Kinney Brothers to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 1/2 × 1 7/16 in. (6.4 × 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
63.350.220.245.1712
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 19th century, American tobacco companies like Kinney Brothers innovative marketing by inserting collectible trading cards into cigarette packs. petite albumen photograph, *Clara St. Maur, from the Actresses seriesN245)*, issued in 1890 to promote Sweet Caporal Cig, exemplifies that trend. Measuring just 2½ × 1⅞ inches, it captures the glamorous portrait of actress Clara St Maur, one of many female performers celebrated in the series. These cards turned smoking into a gateway for culture fandom, blending celebrity worship with consumer allure during a time when actresses symbolized ...
About the Artist
Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company · 1869–2011
**Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company (1869–2011)** Founded around 1869 by Francis Sherwood Kinney in New York City, the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company quickly rose to prominence in the burgeoning American cigarette industry. Francis, a pioneering tobacco manufacturer, experimented with hand-rolled cigarettes using blends of Turkish and Virginia tobacco, scaling to mass production by employing Europ...