Portugal, from the Types of All Nations series (N24) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1889

This small card, part of Allen & Ginter’s "Types of All Nations" series, presents a vision of Portugal through the figure of a woman adorned in what are meant to be typical garments. Consider the headscarf, a simple piece of cloth with an array of cultural echoes. Throughout history, from ancient Greece to Renaissance Italy, the headscarf has signified status, piety, and even rebellion. In this depiction, it perhaps aims to evoke a sense of the 'exotic,' wrapping the sitter in a perceived cultural identity. However, look closely and you'll notice an element of theatricality, a constructed image for the consumption of the Gilded Age. The artist, or rather, the company, presents us with an idea of Portugual, filtered through the lens of commercial imagination. This act of cultural representation, laden with the weight of history and the desire to categorize, taps into our collective memory of 'the other.' It's a powerful performance, revealing as much about the viewer as it does about the subject.