Marie Chester, from World's Beauties, Series 2 (N27) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1888

This is Marie Chester, from World's Beauties, Series 2 (N27) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes, a chromolithograph card made in the late 19th century. These cards were inserted into cigarette packs. Allen & Ginter sought to appeal to consumers through images of idealized beauty, but these images also reflected the social norms of the time. The image of Marie Chester embodies the era's concept of feminine beauty, emphasizing white, eurocentric features. The "World's Beauties" series illustrates how beauty standards are socially constructed and how commercial interests played a role in shaping those standards. The positioning of these women—reduced to an image on a cigarette card—highlights the commodification of identity and the pervasive influence of consumer culture on self-perception. Consider how such images, widely distributed, contributed to a limited and exclusionary definition of beauty, influencing women's identities and experiences.