Goblet, from the Novelties series (N228, Type 3) issued by Kinney Bros.

Art Historical Context

Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century American advertising with *Goblet, from the Novelties series (228, Type 3)*, a diminutive yet delightful commercial color lithograph produced by the Kinney Brothers Company in 1889 Measuring just 1 9/16 inches in diameter, this round ephemera was likely tucked into cigarette packs as a collectible insert, enticing smokers with its eye-catching imagery of women and elegant drinking glasses. Part of a popular series, it exemplifies the era's booming trade card culture, where tobacco firms competed to charm collectors with whimsical novelties. Chromolithography, the medium here, revolutionized mass printing by layering vibrant colors through multiple lithographic stones, creating affordable yet richly hued designs that mimicked fine art. Kinney Bros., a Richmond, Virginia-based company, mastered this technique to promote their Sweet Caporal cigarettes, blending commercial savvy with decorative appeal. The depiction of graceful women alongside ornate goblets reflects Victorian tastes for femininity and luxury objects, turning everyday promotion into coveted keepsakes. Today, preserved in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Jefferson R. Burdick Collection—a treasure trove of printed ephemera—this tiny gem highlights how advertising shaped popular culture, bridging art, commerce, and collecting in Gilded Age America. A reminder that even the smallest prints can pour forth big stories!

About the Artist

Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company · 1869–2011

**Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company (1869–2011)** Founded around 1869 by Francis Sherwood Kinney in New York City, the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company quickly rose to prominence in the burgeoning American cigarette industry. Francis, a pioneering tobacco manufacturer, experimented with hand-rolled cigarettes using blends of Turkish and Virginia tobacco, scaling to mass production by employing Europ...