Number 3, Transfixed Cards, from the Tricks with Cards series (N138) issued by W. Duke, Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco

Art Historical Context

Step into the whimsical world of 19th-century advertising with *Number 3, Transfixed Cards* from the *Tricks with Cards* series (N138), a vibrant commercial color lithograph produced in 1887 by W. Duke, Sons & Co., with printing by The Giles Company. This pocket-sized gem (4 3/16 × 2 1/2 in.) captures a magical illusion: playing cards dramatically pierced by swords, held by deft hands, evoking the era's fascination with sleight-of-hand and parlor tricks. Issued to promote "Honest Long Cut Tobacco," it was one of many collectible trade cards designed to entice smokers and hobbyists alike. Chromolithography, the medium's hallmark technique, brought vivid colors and intricate details to life affordably, revolutionizing mass-produced imagery. These ephemera—originally disposable promotions—now offer a window into Gilded Age consumer culture, where tobacco giants like Duke competed fiercely through themed series on magic, sports, and actresses. Duke's innovative marketing helped build an empire, foreshadowing modern branding. Today, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department as part of The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, this card highlights how everyday objects preserve social history, blending art, commerce, and illusion in a single, enchanting glance.

About the Artist

W. Duke, Sons & Co.|The Giles Company · 1870–1920

**W. Duke, Sons & Co.: Pioneers of Chromolithographic Trade Card Art** W. Duke, Sons & Co., an American tobacco manufacturer, emerged from the entrepreneurial vision of Washington Duke (1820–1905) and his sons in Durham, North Carolina. After the Civil War, Washington abandoned farming in 1874 to join his eldest son, Brodie L. Duke, in the burgeoning tobacco trade, establishing a factory that for...