Soldier of Alpine Regiments, Italy, 1886, from the Military Series (N224) issued by Kinney Tobacco Company to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes
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, N224.502
Tags
Art Historical Context
This charming chromolithograph, *Soldier of Alpine Regiments, Italy,1886*, is a tiny gem from the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company's Military Series (N224), in 1888 to promote their popular Sweet Caporal Cigarettes. Measuring just 2¾ × 1½ inches, these cards were tucked into cigarette packs as collectibles, sparking a craze among Victorian-era enthusiasts for military-themed trading cards. They captured the public's fascination with exotic soldiers and their uniforms from around the world, blending patriotism, adventure, and escapism in an age of imperial expansion. Printed using vibrant color...
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...