Happy New Year, Mr. Holly and Miss Mistletoe, from the New Years 1890 series (N227) issued by Kinney Bros. 1889 - 1890

This New Year’s card, issued in 1890 by Kinney Bros. Tobacco Company, is made of paper, printed with chromolithography. This was a fairly new technique at the time, allowing images in multiple colors to be mass-produced. The printing process involved creating a series of lithographic stones or plates, one for each color. The images were then printed in layers, building up the full-color design. Look closely, and you can see the slightly misregistered edges, a telltale sign of this method. The result is a bright, eye-catching image, perfect for catching the attention of consumers. Cards like these were often included in cigarette packs as a bonus, encouraging repeat purchases. The themes ranged widely, from sports figures to historical scenes, but they were all about one thing: promoting the brand. In this case, the imagery of holly and mistletoe is combined with a playful anthropomorphism, giving the plants human faces. This would have appealed to a wide audience and reinforced positive associations with the Kinney Bros. brand. So, next time you see a seemingly simple printed image, remember to consider the materials, the making, and the context that gave it meaning. It’s a reminder that even the most ephemeral objects can tell us a great deal about the society that produced them.