From the Girls and Children series (N64) promoting Virginia Brights Cigarettes for Allen & Ginter brand tobacco products 1886

This promotional card for Allen & Ginter's Virginia Brights cigarettes was likely made in the United States in the late 19th century. These cards, inserted into cigarette packs, were immensely popular and offer insight into the period's social and cultural values. Here, we see a young woman adorned in the fashionable attire of the time. The “Girls and Children” series, to which this card belongs, reveals much about the era's idealized vision of women. These cards often depicted women as objects of beauty and refinement, reinforcing societal expectations and gender roles. Allen and Ginter, through these cards, capitalized on the growing consumer culture, using images to associate their product with desirable social values. Historians can use sources like fashion magazines, etiquette guides, and marketing archives to decode these images. The presence of this card in a museum collection invites us to reflect on the history of advertising and its impact on shaping cultural norms and behaviors.