Huzzar, France, 1853, from the Military Series (N224) issued by Kinney Tobacco Company to promote Sweet Caporal Cigarettes

Art Historical Context

Step into the vibrant world of 19th-century advertising with *Huzzar, France, 1853*, a petite commercial color lithograph from Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department. Issued in 1888 by the Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company as of their Military Series (N224), this 2¾ × 1½-inch card promoted Sweet Caporal Cigarettes It depicts a dashing French hussar—a light cavalry soldier from the mid-19th century— with firearms, embodying the era's romanticized view of military prowess. Lithography, a revolutionary printing technique, allowed for bold, colorful reproductions at scale, making these ephemera accessible collectibles tucked into cigarette packs. Popular among smokers and hobbyists, the series tapped into the public's fascination with global armies, blending historical accuracy with commercial appeal to boost brand loyalty. Today, preserved in The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, this tiny print offers a window into Gilded Age marketing and masculinity. Its survival highlights how everyday advertising artifacts capture cultural obsessions with soldiers and empire, transforming tobacco tins into treasure troves of history.

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...