Gallic Spearman, France, B.C., from the Military Series (N224) issued by Kinney Tobacco Company to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 × 1 1/2 in. (7 × 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
Burdick 218, N224.390
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the world of 19th-century advertising with *Gallic Spearman, France, B.C.*, a vibrant commercial color lithograph from the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company's Series (N224), in 1888 to promote their popular Sweet Caporal Cigarettes. tiny cards—measuring just 2¾ × 1½ inches—were tucked into cigarette packs as collectible incentives, sparking a craze among smokers and enthusiasts alike. Produced during the height of chromolithography's golden age, this ephemera captures the era's blend of marketing savvy and historical fascination. The image depicts a fierce Gallic warrior from ancient ...
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...