Maud Harrison, from World's Beauties, Series 2 (N27) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 x 1 1/2 in. (7 x 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
63.350.201.27.8
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the colorful world of Gilded Age advertising with *Maud Harrison, from Beauties, Series (N27)*, a tiny commercial color lithograph produced in 1888 by Allen & Ginter, with lithography by Lindner, Eddy & Claus Issued as inserts in cigarette packs, these cards were part of a popular series celebrating "world's beauties"—portraits of admired women like actress Maud Harrison, embodying Victorian ideals of elegance and allure. Measuring just 2 3/4 x 1 1/2 inches, they were designed for easy collection, sparking a collecting craze among smokers and enthusiasts alike. Chromolithography, t...
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...