Card 3, from the Girl Cyclists series (N49) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1887

This is card 3, from the ‘Girl Cyclists’ series, made by Allen & Ginter as a promotional insert for Virginia Brights Cigarettes. It’s a lithograph, a type of printmaking that depends on the mutual repulsion of grease and water. Here, the even, slightly mottled tone of the background suggests the use of a lithographic stone. The process allowed for mass production, churning out countless identical images intended to be collected and traded. The image itself captures a moment of nascent female empowerment; a woman astride a high-wheel bicycle, a symbol of modernity and freedom. The bike’s own manufacture speaks to the rise of industrial production, while the card itself reflects the marketing strategies of an emerging consumer culture. So, though modest in scale and simple in its making, this little card opens a window onto vast social and economic shifts. It reminds us that even the most everyday objects are embedded in complex histories of labor, technology, and aspiration.