Richardson, 2nd Base, New York, from the series Old Judge Cigarettes 1887

Curator: The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds this intriguing gelatin silver print, a baseball card, really, titled "Richardson, 2nd Base, New York." It's from 1887 and was created by Goodwin & Company for Old Judge Cigarettes. Editor: What immediately strikes me is how posed it feels, almost theatrical. It lacks the dynamic energy you’d expect from a sporting image, the baseball player looks statuesque. There's a strange solemnity to it. Curator: Yes, the backdrop lends itself to that—a somewhat dreamy, hazy background instead of a bustling baseball field. Consider, though, these cards were meant as collectibles. This carefully constructed image makes Richardson an archetype. Editor: An archetype indeed! Baseball figures here merge with heroic ideals—see how the uniform subtly mirrors those Roman-era stripes? Cigarette cards aimed to give mythic grandeur to modern icons. It's all carefully constructed symbolism, a conscious act of cultural narrative making. Curator: Fascinating observation about those visual echoes. Goodwin and Company understood how powerful images shape memory, and how to associate those heroes with, say, their product. The almost hazy realism… it captures that transitional era of baseball. Editor: Right! The visual language is so telling. Sepia tones imply history. Even the slightly faded look emphasizes authenticity as cultural legacy, don’t you think? It suggests “old-timey values” almost more directly than simple representation ever could. That’s what sticks in the collective psyche over generations. Curator: Exactly. The card wasn't just about selling cigarettes, it was embedding a whole set of cultural ideas about heroism and national identity. An affordable accessible icon—you found it at the bottom of your cigarette pack. A fleeting pleasure tied to the longer term, that endures even now. Editor: I suppose so. Next time I'm about to strike out at the batting cage, I'll remember this slightly wistful portrait, striving towards an untouchable perfection, like a god. Maybe then, I'll finally get a hit!