Florida, from Flags of the States and Territories (N11) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands
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
63.350.201.11.20
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 19th century, Allen & Ginter, a American tobacco company, revolutionized marketing with collectible cigarette cards. This vibrant chromolithograph, *Florida, from Flags of the States and Territories (11)*, issued in 1888, is one such card—measuring just 2¾ x 1½ inches, it was tucked into cigarette packs as a free insert. Depicting Florida's state flag against a starry backdrop, it captures the era's growing national pride, especially as the U.S. expanded with new territories. Chromolithography, the medium here, was a breakthrough technique allowing mass-produced, full-color prints...
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...