Sword Bayonet, from the Arms of All Nations series (N3) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands
1887
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
63.350.201.3.2
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with this petite *Sword Bayonet* card from Allen & Ginter's *Arms of All Nations series (N3), in 1887. Allen & Ginter, pioneering American tobacco magnates, issued these collectible chromolithographs as inserts in their cigarette packs, sparking a collecting craze among enthusiasts. This tiny print (just 2¾ x 1½ inches) showcases a gleaming sword bayonet—a versatile infantry weapon combining a blade for thrusting with a rifle mount—reflecting the era's fascination with global military hardware amid imperial expansion and colonial rivalrie...
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...