Annam, from the Natives in Costume series (N16), Teofani Issue, for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands 1886 - 1900

This chromolithograph, made by Allen & Ginter for their cigarette brand, is an example of late 19th-century commercial printing. These cards were essentially miniature billboards slipped into cigarette packs as a marketing ploy. The material is paper, but the process is where things get interesting. Chromolithography allowed for mass production of color images. Think of it as an early form of mechanical color separation and printing, but with the manual labor of carving images into stones. Each color required a separate stone, and aligning these perfectly was a skilled task. What makes this particular card relevant is not just the image, but also the way it reflects global trade and cultural exchange – or perhaps more accurately, appropriation. The image flattens the sitter into a type, readily consumed by the marketplace. It’s a reminder that even seemingly innocuous items like cigarette cards are deeply embedded in social and economic systems.