Card Number 16, Miss Broughton, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-2) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes 1880s

Curator: What we're looking at here is a card, "Card Number 16, Miss Broughton," one from a series titled "Actors and Actresses" that W. Duke, Sons & Co. produced in the 1880s to promote their Cross Cut Cigarettes. It's currently held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Editor: It's so sepia-toned, so contained! Makes me think of pressed flowers, secrets tucked into lockets, something melancholic, yet… poised. It’s as if she knows a secret and chooses not to share it. Curator: Exactly! It reflects the cultural fascination with celebrity and the burgeoning advertising industry of that era. Images of famous figures, especially actors and actresses, were powerful endorsements. Editor: Cigarettes! Not quite the image of health and beauty they'd probably hoped to project for her... So the question is, what archetypes were they hoping to sell? Beyond just smoking pleasure. Curator: I believe her slightly averted gaze hints at feminine modesty, her elaborate hairstyle indicates the elegance and high fashion, and combined with her status as an actress, evokes cultural notions of beauty, success and public image. The portraits are meant to carry a kind of social cachet. Editor: I find it all fascinating – the subtle branding on top, "Cross Cut Cigarettes are the best", almost floating above her like an aura or thought. She’s this composed face, carrying that capitalist slogan on her brow. It speaks volumes about the intersection of celebrity, commodity, and early advertising. It almost feels like this very controlled fantasy of both the artist and her. Curator: Definitely, and this little piece offers a concise lens through which to view the performance of identity and commerce during the late 19th century. Each card acts like a tiny mirror, reflecting social ambitions, fame, and the rising power of image manipulation. Editor: Absolutely. The whole piece, sepia tones and all, gives a little slice of lost romance and old societal mechanisms all working through this one tiny, cardboard photograph.