Tuscany, from the Dancing Girls of the World series (N185) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.
Medium
Commercial color lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 1/2 in. (6.8 × 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
63.350.216.185.48
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of late 19th-century advertising with *Tuscany, from the Dancing Girls of the World (N185)*, a petite commercial color lithograph produced William S. Kimball & in 1889. Issued as part of a popular tobacco premium series, this tiny card—measuring just 2 /16 × 1 1/2 inches—was likely tucked into cigarette packages or distributed to entice collectors. Depicting a graceful dancer evoking Tuscany's cultural flair, it captures the era's fascination withized global femininity, blending allure with commercial savvy. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized mass p...
About the Artist
William S. Kimball & Company
**William S. Kimball & Company**, a pioneering American tobacco manufacturer, was established in 1846 in Rochester, New York, by William S. Kimball and James C. Hart. The firm quickly grew into one of the city's largest employers, particularly of women, producing popular brands like Peerless chewing tobacco, Rigatta and Fireside smoking tobacco, and Vanity Fair cigarettes. Under Kimball's leadersh...