Plantation, from National Dances (N225, Type 1) issued by Kinney Bros.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 × 1 1/2 in. (7 × 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
Burdick 218, N225.61
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century American advertising with *Plantation, from National Dances (N225, Type 1)*, a diminutive yet dazzling commercial color lithograph produced by the Kinney Brothers Company in 1889 Issued as part of a popular series of cigarette cards, this tiny print (just 2¾ × 1½ inches) captures the profile of a female dancer, evoking the rhythmic energy of national folk dances. These collectible cards were tucked into tobacco packs to entice smokers, blending artistry with clever marketing during the Gilded Age. Chromolithography, the medium's hallmark technique, ...
About the Artist
Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company · 1869–2011
**Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company (1869–2011)** Founded around 1869 by Francis Sherwood Kinney in New York City, the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company quickly rose to prominence in the burgeoning American cigarette industry. Francis, a pioneering tobacco manufacturer, experimented with hand-rolled cigarettes using blends of Turkish and Virginia tobacco, scaling to mass production by employing Europ...