Card Number 387, Carrie Perkins, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-5) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cameo Cigarettes 1880s

This late 19th century card, featuring actress Carrie Perkins, was made by W. Duke, Sons & Co. to promote Cameo Cigarettes. It's a printed photograph on card stock, an industrial product made for mass consumption. The material itself – a small, easily produced card – speaks volumes about the rise of consumer culture. Photography, once a laborious process, became streamlined, enabling images like this to be printed en masse. The card's surface is smooth and coated, designed for durability and visual appeal. The image of Carrie Perkins, likely taken in a studio, is carefully staged to present her as both alluring and respectable, a balancing act crucial for marketing to a broad audience. The card format itself is telling, suggestive of the kind of collecting frenzy we associate with baseball cards today. By including these cards in cigarette packs, Duke cleverly incentivized repeat purchases. This seemingly simple object encapsulates the intertwined histories of photography, marketing, and the burgeoning culture of consumerism.