Left on Base, from the Talk of the Diamond set (N135) issued by Duke Sons & Co., a branch of the American Tobacco Company
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 1/2 × 4 1/8 in. (6.4 × 10.4 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
63.350.207.135.5
Tags
Art Historical Context
"Left on Base" is vibrant chromolithograph from the 1888 "Talk of Diamond" set (N), produced by W. Duke, Sons &., a branch of the Tobacco Company, with lithography by Schumacher & Ettlinger. just 2½ × 4⅛ inches, this pocket-sized print captures the excitement of baseball—a burgeoning national pastime in late 19th-century America. Issued as promotional inserts with cigarette packs, these cards turned everyday tobacco purchases into collectibles, fueling a craze among fans and boosting sales for the tobacco industry. The artwork's title nods to a classic baseball mishap: runners stranded on bas...
About the Artist
American Tobacco Company|Schumacher & Ettlinger|W. Duke, Sons & Co.
**American Tobacco Company (1890–1911)** Founded on January 31, 1890, in Durham, North Carolina, by James Buchanan Duke, the American Tobacco Company emerged from the consolidation of five major U.S. tobacco manufacturers: W. Duke & Sons, Allen & Ginter, Goodwin & Company, W.S. Kimball & Co., and Kinney Brothers. Under Duke's aggressive leadership, it rapidly achieved monopoly status, controlling...