Daisy Murdock, from the Actresses series (N203) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 5/8 × 1 3/8 in. (6.6 × 3.5 cm)
Classification
Ephemera|Photographs
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
63.350.216.203.385
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of late 19th-century advertising with *Daisy Murdock, the Actresses series (203)*, a charming commercial color lithograph produced William S. Kimball & in 1889. This tiny portrait (just 2 5/8 × 1 3/8 inches) captures the allure of Daisy Murdock, a popular actress of the era, as part of a collectible series issued by the tobacco firm. Such ephemera—often tucked into cigarette packs—were wildly popular promotional items, blending celebrity culture with consumer marketing during the Gilded Age. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized mass printing by layeri...
About the Artist
William S. Kimball & Company
**William S. Kimball & Company**, a pioneering American tobacco manufacturer, was established in 1846 in Rochester, New York, by William S. Kimball and James C. Hart. The firm quickly grew into one of the city's largest employers, particularly of women, producing popular brands like Peerless chewing tobacco, Rigatta and Fireside smoking tobacco, and Vanity Fair cigarettes. Under Kimball's leadersh...