Morea, from the Dancing Girls of the World series (N185) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 1/2 in. (6.8 × 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
63.350.216.185.36
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century ephemera with *Morea, from the Dancing Girls of the World series (N185)*, a petite commercial color lithograph produced by William S. Kimball & Company in 1889. Measuring just 2 11/16 × 1 1/2 inches, this delicate print captures the graceful figure of Morea, one of a series celebrating dancers from diverse global cultures. Issued as collectible inserts in cigarette packages, these cards blended advertising savvy with exotic allure, enticing smokers to amass full sets. Chromolithography, the era's breakthrough in affordable color printing, allowed Ki...
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...