Marten, from the Quadrupeds series (N21) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 1 1/2 x 2 3/4 in. (3.8 x 7 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
63.350.201.21.30
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold the nimble marten, captured in vivid detail on this petite commercial color lithograph from 1890. Part of Allen & Ginter's Quadeds series (N21 this card was produced by the innovative tobacco company to entice collectors, tucked into cigarette packages as promotional inserts. Measuring just 1 1/2 x 2 3/4 inches, it exemplifies the ephemera of the era—disposable yet desirable mementos that fueled a collecting frenzy among Victorians. Crafted using chromolithography by artists Lindner, Eddy & Claus, the print showcases the technique's mastery: layered colors applied through stone lithogr...
About the Artist
Allen & Ginter|Lindner, Eddy & Claus
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...