Empress of Japan, from World's Sovereigns series (N34) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes
1889
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
63.350.202.34.29
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Empress of Japan*, gem from Allen & Ginter's *World's Sovereigns* (N34), produced in 1889. This petite commercial color lithograph—asuring just 2¾ x 1½ inches—was one of the collectible cards tucked into cigarette packs, sparking a craze for trading these tiny treasures among enthusiasts. Allen & Ginter, pioneering American tobacco innovators, used such ephemera to boost brand loyalty, blending commerce with global curiosity during an era of imperial expansion and exotic allure. Crafted via chromolithography, a breakthrough techniq...
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...