Card Number 28, Stanly, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-1) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes 1880s

This small card was issued by Duke Sons & Co., around the turn of the 20th century, as a promotional item for Cross Cut Cigarettes. Printed on thin card stock, it features an image of an actress named Stanly. The material itself speaks volumes about the culture of the time. It's a mass-produced, disposable object, meant to be collected and traded, a small token within a larger system of consumption. The photographic printing process, though relatively new at the time, allowed for the widespread dissemination of images, turning actors and actresses into commodities, and celebrities into household names. The card also gives insight into labor and class. The production of these cards, and the cigarettes they advertised, relied on a vast network of workers, from tobacco farmers to factory laborers, their efforts distilled into these small rectangles of paper. So, the next time you see a seemingly insignificant object like this, remember that it's not just an image, but a product of complex processes, of labor, materials, and modes of production that reflect the broader social and economic context of its time.