Steamship Muriel, Quebec Steamship Company, from the Ocean and River Steamers series (N83) for Duke brand cigarettes 1887

"Steamship Muriel, Quebec Steamship Co., from the Ocean and River Steamers series (N83) for Duke brand cigarettes," is a chromolithograph trade card created in 1887 by the tobacco company W. Duke, Sons & Co. It depicts the steamship *Muriel* sailing in the water with a woman’s face in the upper left corner and the flags of Canada and the United States in the upper right. Trade cards like these were often given to customers to advertise a product and the steamship lines of the late 19th century. The *Muriel* was a popular ship owned by the Quebec Steamship Company that sailed between the United States and Canada, which is indicated by the American and Canadian flags on the trade card. The image is characteristic of chromolithography, a process that used multiple printing plates to create vibrant colors, resulting in a graphic design that is characteristic of the 19th century and early 20th century. This particular trade card is now in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.