Kingston, from The World's Racers series (N32) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1888

This small lithograph of Kingston, a famed racehorse, comes from Allen & Ginter, a cigarette company based in Richmond, Virginia. These cards were inserted into cigarette packs, a marketing strategy that reveals a great deal about the cultural values of the time. As a commercial product, the image subtly upholds an established social order. The rider, presumably white, is centered atop the horse, an animal of labor and leisure. The image naturalizes a hierarchy, suggesting a relationship between humans and animals, and also, by extension, between people. Moreover, consider Richmond, Virginia, the location of the company: after the Civil War, it struggled to redefine itself and its identity after the abolishment of slavery. Here, the focus on horse racing, a sport associated with wealth and leisure, becomes a deliberate attempt to rebrand and create a new image. The emotional resonance of such images then, is complex, layered with histories of race, labor, and economic aspiration.