Egypt, from Flags of All Nations, Series 1 (N9) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands
1887
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
63.350.201.9.50
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Egypt, from Flags of All Nations, Series1 (N9)*, a petite commercial color lithograph produced the pioneering tobacco firm Allen & G in 1887. This tiny card (just 2¾ x 1½ inches) depicts the flag of Egypt, symbolizing era's fascination with global cultures amid European and American imperialism. Allen & Ginter, innovators in the trade card craze, inserted these collectibles into cigarette packs to brand loyalty and spark a collecting frenzy among enthusiasts worldwide. Crafted via chromolithography—a revolutionary printing techniqu...
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...