Austria, from the National Flags series (N195) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. 1891

This small chromolithograph of the Austrian flag was produced by the Wm. S. Kimball & Co., a tobacco company, as a collectible insert for their "Hard Tack Cut Plug." The medium itself—mass-produced color printing—speaks to the rise of consumer culture and global trade in the late 19th century. These cards weren't conceived as high art, but as promotional items, pure ephemera. Yet, the printing process involved a division of labor, from the designers to the press operators, all contributing to an object intended for mass consumption. The flag imagery evokes national pride, yet its ultimate purpose was to sell tobacco. The design emphasizes clarity and recognizability, sacrificing detail for immediate impact. These cards were truly of their time, and were never intended to last. Appreciating them now requires us to look beyond traditional art historical categories, and to consider the social and economic forces that brought them into being.