Manfredo, from National Dances (N225, Type 2) issued by Kinney Bros.

Art Historical Context

In the late 19th century, American tobacco companies like Kinney Brothers the use of colorful collectible cards as promotional inserts in cigarette packages, everyday ephemera into coveted treasures. *Manfredo, from Dances (N225, Type 2)*, in 1889, is a prime example from their "National Dances" series This petite commercial color lithograph (2 3/4 × 1 1/2 in.) captures a graceful female dancer in mid-performance, evoking the exotic allure of international folk traditions during an era of global fascination with cultural spectacles. Chromolithography, the innovative printing technique employed here, allowed for vivid, multi-layered colors on a mass scale, making high-quality illustrations affordable and appealing to a broad audience. Kinney Bros.' cards not only boosted sales but also popularized imagery of women dancers, reflecting Victorian-era ideals of femininity, movement, and national pride. Today, preserved in The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, this card highlights the intersection of commerce, art, and popular culture, offering a glimpse into Gilded Age collecting mania. (178 words)

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...