Harry Lyons, Right Field, St. Louis Browns, from the Old Judge series (N172) for Old Judge Cigarettes 1888

Editor: So, here we have "Harry Lyons, Right Field, St. Louis Browns," a baseball card from 1888. It was made by Goodwin & Company for Old Judge Cigarettes and is a photographic print. It’s quite small, almost like a vintage trading card, and Lyons has this very serious, determined expression. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: The sepia tones, like a forgotten dream, whisper tales of summer days and tobacco-stained fingers. It's more than a baseball card, it’s a portal. Imagine the photographer, capturing a slice of fleeting athletic glory. He must have worked tirelessly perfecting light in an instant and then repeating the action, trying to freeze this athlete, Harry, in motion! He had one chance! I see a determined soul staring back, caught between legend and the everyday. Does it feel posed or candid to you? Editor: That’s a good point. It does seem staged, actually, when you look closer at his stiff stance and the backdrop. There's something oddly formal about it. I initially missed that because it’s a baseball card, you know? Curator: Exactly! And consider Old Judge Cigarettes. The branding is part of the narrative! A player and a smoke – what a classic, old-timey endorsement pairing. This photograph immortalizes the sport of the everyman and connects a player with a smoke; what an era. What are your impressions of seeing the advertising meshed with the photographic work of art? Editor: Well, it definitely puts it in context. It's not just a picture of a baseball player; it's a piece of commercial culture, designed to sell something. This makes me wonder what life would be like with trading cards like this circulating everywhere you look. Curator: Absolutely! And seeing them in the Metropolitan Museum adds a deliciously ironic layer, don't you think? How things transcend their original intentions and acquire new meanings as they travel through time. Food for thought, indeed.