Life of John Ericsson, from the Histories of Poor Boys and Famous People series of booklets (N79) for Duke brand cigarettes 1888

Curator: This curious little artifact is one of the "Life of John Ericsson" booklets, a trade card if you will, from the "Histories of Poor Boys and Famous People" series, released around 1888 by W. Duke, Sons & Co. for their brand of cigarettes. Editor: My goodness, he's rather intense looking, isn't he? It’s something about the scale I suppose - a tiny titan peering out. Are we sure this wasn't created to actively dissuade smoking? It's got that stern, Victorian 'do what you're told' aura. Curator: Quite the contrary. The booklets were meant to promote virtues like hard work and ingenuity by showcasing role models, their portraits acting as symbols of self-made success and encouraging brand loyalty at the same time. Editor: So, aspiration, not intimidation, got it. I still find his presence somewhat unsettling. His gaze sort of lingers, does it not? Like he’s about to give me some terribly difficult mechanical problem to solve. There’s something both faded and very pointed about it. Curator: Indeed. Ericsson was an incredibly prolific inventor and engineer who revolutionized naval technology. These trade cards offer a snapshot into a time when companies used popular biographies and idealized imagery to appeal to their consumer base, creating almost a collectible form of iconography around accomplishment. Editor: So the smoke swirling from your cigarette held the key to an inspirational narrative... A novel method of imbuing vice with virtue, isn't it? One little card promising fame...or at least something approximating it in your own little world. And who could resist? Curator: And there’s a compelling cultural commentary woven into the format itself; the distribution method created these unexpected collisions between everyday commerce and the pantheon of greatness. The symbolism embedded in each portrait becomes diffused into popular consciousness. Editor: Which perhaps explains why the weight of John Ericsson's gaze still bears down on us across the decades. He may just be lurking there still, inside some old cigarette pack, somewhere in some attic of history, reminding us that small things might carry enormous weight. Curator: Well said. A convergence of image, biography, and commerce—a humble coloured pencil drawing that reveals how heroes and commodities co-mingle in the shaping of collective memory.