Caricatured figure from Siam, 1/4 Tikal, from the series Coins of All Nations (N72, variation 2) for Duke brand cigarettes 1889

This small chromolithograph produced by W. Duke, Sons & Co. is part of a series of cigarette cards that were popular at the end of the 19th century. This piece, titled "Caricatured figure from Siam", presents a complex collision of commerce, culture, and prejudice. These cards were inserted into cigarette packs as a marketing tactic, but they also reflect the era’s colonial gaze. The depiction of a Siamese person, now Thailand, is heavily caricatured, with exaggerated features, which reduces a person to a set of stereotypes. The figure carries a coin, the Tikal, literally bearing the weight of her culture's currency. The phrase “Value 16cts.” is written on the right side of the figure. This commercial assessment underscores how people and cultures were being commodified and consumed in the same way as the cigarettes themselves. The image reduces identity to a tradable item. These cards remind us of the power dynamics inherent in representation and the complex ways that advertising has shaped our perceptions of one another.