Number 9, Surer than Three Card Monte, from the Tricks with Cards series (N138) issued by W. Duke, Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco 1887

This promotional card, 'Number 9, Surer than Three Card Monte,' was created around 1900 by W. Duke, Sons & Co. as a colourful advertisement for Honest Long Cut Tobacco. Visually, the design is split vertically between a dark brown field and a lighter yellow. On the brown field, a gesturing hand points downwards toward three playing cards, floating like geometric planes. To the right, a magician’s wand stands rigidly, a dark line against the brown background, echoed by the sharp angles of the cards. The use of vertical lines, in the wand, and the composition, which stacks the cards on top of one another, create a structured semiotic system where each element signifies a different part of the trick. This deliberate order contrasts with the trick itself, which relies on deception. The artist employs a flat, graphic style that reduces the scene to its essential components, turning a magic trick into a study of form and function.