[Actress cradling small dog], from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-8) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Duke Cigarettes 1890 - 1895

This photographic card, distributed by Duke Sons & Co., features an actress cradling a small dog, a common motif in portrayals of women across centuries. The tender embrace between woman and animal echoes back to ancient depictions of goddesses with their sacred animals. Think of Isis with her cow, or Diana, the huntress, with her hounds; symbols of fertility, protection, and the nurturing aspects of the divine feminine. This archetypal connection resurfaces in Renaissance portraits of noblewomen with lapdogs, signifying wealth and domesticity. Here, the gesture carries a trace of those earlier meanings, yet it's also transformed. In this modern context, the dog represents companionship, perhaps hinting at the actress's own need for connection in a transient world of performance. The embrace speaks to a deeper, primal bond with the natural world, a longing for simplicity amid societal complexities. Such imagery reminds us that these visual echoes are never truly lost but rather are continually reshaped by history and personal experience.