Cora Tanner as "The Paroquet," from the series Fancy Dress Ball Costumes (N73) for Duke brand cigarettes 1889

This chromolithograph from around 1870 by W. Duke, Sons & Co. presents Cora Tanner adorned as "The Paroquet," a vibrant bird perched atop her head and pinned to her chest. Birds have long been potent symbols, often representing the soul, freedom, or divine messengers. Consider how, in ancient Egyptian art, birds symbolized the soul's journey after death. Here, the paroquet serves as a flamboyant, almost theatrical emblem of beauty and exoticism. Throughout history, birds appear across cultures, from the dove of peace in Christian iconography to the ravens associated with Odin in Norse mythology. Each bird carries a freight of cultural meaning. The choice of a paroquet, a bird associated with mimicry and display, tells us something more. It is a reminder that identity itself can be a performance, a costume we don for the world, echoing through time and culture in an endless cycle of reinvention.