Helen Dauvray in Algerian Costume, from the set Actors and Actresses, Second Series (N71) for Duke brand cigarettes

Art Historical Context

Step into the vibrant world of late 19th-century advertising with *Helen Dauvray in Algerian Costume*, a colorful chromolithograph from the "Actors and Actresses, Series (N71)" by W. Duke, & Co. in collaboration with Knapp & Company 1888–90. This tiny gem, measuring just 2¾ × 1½ inches, captures the celebrated American actress Helen Dauvray in an exotic "Algerian attire—a nod to the era's fascination with Orientalism, where performers donned fantastical costumes inspired by North African motifs to thrill theater audiences. Issued as collectible inserts in Duke brand cigarette packs, these car...

About the Artist

W. Duke, Sons & Co.|Knapp & Company · 1870–1920

**W. Duke, Sons & Co.: Pioneers of Chromolithographic Trade Card Art** W. Duke, Sons & Co., an American tobacco manufacturer, emerged from the entrepreneurial vision of Washington Duke (1820–1905) and his sons in Durham, North Carolina. After the Civil War, Washington abandoned farming in 1874 to join his eldest son, Brodie L. Duke, in the burgeoning tobacco trade, establishing a factory that for...