Sally Blanchard, from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 1) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes
ca. 1888
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 3/4 x 1 3/8 in. (7 x 3.5 cm)
Classification
Photographs|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
63.350.203.45.45
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the glittering world of 1880s theater with this petite albumen photograph of actress Sally Blanchard, part of Allen & Ginter's celebrated and Actresses series (45, Type 1). Produced around 1888 to promote Virginia Brights Cig, these tiny cards—measuring just 2¾ × 1⅜ inches—were tucked into cigarette packs as collectible incentives, sparking a craze among enthusiasts. Allen & Ginter, innovative tobacco magnates, pioneered this marketing strategy, blending celebrity portraiture with everyday commerce during America's Gilded Age. Crafted via the albumen process, where a light-sensitive...
About the Artist
Allen & Ginter
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...