Kingfisher, from the Birds of America series (N37) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes 1888

This is a chromolithograph of a Kingfisher, printed by Allen & Ginter in Richmond, Virginia, as part of their "Birds of America" series, which was included in cigarette packs. These cards were part of a larger trend of using images to market consumer goods in the late 19th century United States. The images often drew on popular interests, like natural history, but served primarily to promote the brand. The images themselves weren't necessarily artistic masterpieces, yet they speak volumes about the culture and economy of the time. The series’ title ‘Birds of America’ appropriates that of John James Audubon’s famous and monumental ornithological study, democratizing it and reducing it to the scale of commercial ephemera. To understand this image, we might research the history of tobacco companies, marketing strategies, and the cultural status of ornithology in the late 19th century. Only then we can truly appreciate the complex social forces that shaped this small, mass-produced image.