Cobaea: Gossip, from the series Floral Beauties and Language of Flowers (N75) for Duke brand cigarettes

Art Historical Context

This charming 1892 commercial color lithograph belongs to the “Floral Beauties and Language of Flowers” series (N75), issued by the American Tobacco Company to promote Duke brand cigarettes. Measuring just 2¾ by 1½ inches, the tiny card was designed as an insert for cigarette packs, encouraging collectors to assemble the full set. Its subject, Cobaea, carries the Victorian-era meaning “gossip,” reflecting the popular 19th-century custom of conveying messages through flowers. Printed by Donaldson Brothers, the card exemplifies the colorful, mass-produced lithographs that made eye-catching advertising widely available in the late nineteenth century. Though created as disposable ephemera, such trade cards helped shape modern graphic design and foreshadowed today’s collectible trading cards. The delicate depiction of a woman amid blossoms highlights the era’s blend of floral symbolism and commercial appeal. Now preserved in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Burdick Collection, the print offers a glimpse into how everyday objects once carried both visual delight and coded social messages.

About the Artist

Donaldson Brothers|American Tobacco Company (American| ) · 1850 | –1870 |

American, New York|