Turkish, from Types of Nationalities (N240) issued by Kinney Bros. 1890

Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company produced this lithograph, "Turkish, from Types of Nationalities," sometime around the turn of the century. These cards were included in cigarette packs, a marketing strategy that also served to educate consumers about different cultures, albeit through a lens of exoticism and hierarchy. The image presents a stereotypical depiction of a Turkish Sultan, complete with a fez and ornate robe, visually coding him as foreign and powerful. Accompanying the portrait is a short, rhyming verse that reinforces a caricature of the Sultan as a figure of arbitrary and cruel authority. The “Types of Nationalities” series reflects America's growing engagement with the world, but also its impulse to categorize and simplify complex cultures. To understand this card fully, we would look into the history of American Orientalism, the role of advertising in shaping public perceptions, and the cultural context of late 19th-century America. Ultimately, the meaning of this artwork is tied to the social and institutional forces that shaped its production and reception.