Jennie Ricci, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-7) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Duke Cigarettes
1880s
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 3/8 in. (6.8 × 3.5 cm)
Classification
Photographs|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
63.350.208.145.7.225
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 1880s American advertising with this petite albumen photograph of actress Jennie Ricci, part of the *Actors and Actresses* seriesN145-7) issued by W. Duke, & Co. to promote Duke Cigarettes. Measuring just 2 11/16 × 1 3/8 inches, this tiny portrait was likely one of countless collectible inserts tucked into cigarette packs, transforming everyday tobacco purchases into a thrilling hunt for celebrity images. Actresses like Ricci embodied the glamour of the Gilded Age theater scene, them perfect muses for marketers tapping into the era's obsession with stage stars. ...
About the Artist
W. Duke, Sons & Co. · 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...