Abdul Hamid, Sultan of Turkey, from the Rulers, Flags, and Coats of Arms series (N126-1) issued by W. Duke, Sons & Co. 1888

This vibrant chromolithograph of Abdul Hamid, Sultan of Turkey, was made in the late nineteenth century by W. Duke, Sons & Co. It is from a series of collectible cards inserted in cigarette packs. The production process involved transferring an image onto multiple lithographic stones, one for each color. These were then printed in sequence to build up the complete design. The evenness of the colors and crispness of the lines speak to industrialization, where the goal was standardized, consistent results. The card's small size and mass-produced nature reflect the rise of consumer culture, and the increasing accessibility of imagery to a wider public. The card functions on two levels: first, as a promotional tool to encourage cigarette sales. But also it participates in the construction of cultural knowledge, framing the Sultan, his national symbols, and by extension, the Ottoman Empire, for a Western audience. It challenges conventional notions of art, and how value is assigned to images within a globalized world.