Mlle. Rescalli, from the Actresses series (N203) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 5/8 × 1 3/8 in. (6.6 × 3.5 cm)
Classification
Ephemera|Photographs
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
63.350.216.203.440
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of late 19th-century advertising *Mlle. Rescalli, from the Actresses series (203)*, a charming commercial color lithograph produced by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. 1889. This card, measuring just 2 5/8 × 1 3/8 inches, captures the allure of a French actress amid the Gilded Age's theater craze. Tobacco companies like Kimball issued these collectible trade cards—precursors to modern trading cards promotional inserts in cigarette packs, enticing smokers with glamorous portraits of stage stars to boost brand loyalty. The lithographic technique here shines, allowing for vivid, ...
About the Artist
William S. Kimball & Company
**William S. Kimball & Company**, a pioneering American tobacco manufacturer, was established in 1846 in Rochester, New York, by William S. Kimball and James C. Hart. The firm quickly grew into one of the city's largest employers, particularly of women, producing popular brands like Peerless chewing tobacco, Rigatta and Fireside smoking tobacco, and Vanity Fair cigarettes. Under Kimball's leadersh...