Rainbow Pitta, from the Birds of the Tropics series (N5) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands
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
63.350.201.5.9
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Rainbow Pitta* from the *Birds the Tropics* seriesN5), produced by Allen & Ginter 1889. This petite commercial color lithograph, measuring just 2¾ x 1½ inches, was designed as an insert for cigarette packs—a clever marketing ploy by the pioneering tobacco firm to entice collectors. Allen & Ginter, in collaboration with printers George S. Harris & Sons, created these cards to showcase exotic birds, blending education with commerce during the Gilded Age boom in consumer culture. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized mass...
About the Artist
Allen & Ginter|George S. Harris & Sons
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...