Card Number 239, Miss Weathersby, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-7) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Duke Cigarettes 1880s

Editor: Here we have a rather striking albumen silver print of Miss Weathersby from the 1880s, made by W. Duke, Sons & Co. It’s small, almost delicate, but her presence feels quite powerful. What catches your eye when you look at this portrait? Curator: I’m drawn to the interplay between portraiture and advertisement. The very act of distributing these as collectible cards within cigarette packs transforms Miss Weathersby into both an individual and a symbol of consumer desire. Do you notice how her costume almost merges with the floral designs on the card itself? Editor: Yes, there’s definitely a connection! It's like she's emerging from a bouquet of flowers. Almost fairytale-like! Curator: Exactly! And flowers, especially in the Victorian era, were heavy with symbolism. They often spoke of love, beauty, and even mortality. Given she's an actress featured in a cigarette promotion, could those floral motifs be hinting at the ephemeral nature of fame or beauty? The fleeting enjoyment of a cigarette, perhaps? Editor: That's fascinating. I hadn’t considered that connection between the actress, the flowers, and the ephemeral. It also makes me think of the performative aspect of femininity during that time. Curator: Precisely. What is "performed" or consumed for an audience. It raises the question, doesn't it: how are women positioned within systems of desire, and what roles are they expected to play? Editor: That makes you think differently about why it was distributed this way! Thank you. I never thought there'd be so many layers to an advertisement! Curator: And hopefully it'll encourage all of us to look beyond face value when confronted by an image in culture. What appears like a simple object is often laden with meaning.