Miss Fortescue Dressed as Girl of Honor to a Bride of Hardanger, Sweden, from the set Actors and Actresses, First Series (N70) for Duke brand cigarettes 1888 - 1889

This vibrant chromolithograph was produced by W. Duke, Sons & Co. around the turn of the century as a promotional insert for Duke brand cigarettes. It's part of a series called "Actors and Actresses," which speaks volumes about the cultural values of the time. Here, Miss Fortescue is presented "dressed as girl of honor to a bride of Hardanger, Sweden," a carefully chosen costume referencing a specific cultural identity that would have held particular associations for American consumers. These trade cards circulated widely and played a role in shaping perceptions of ethnicity and class. To understand these images fully, we need to consider the history of advertising, popular entertainment, and the social dynamics of the period. Archival research into the Duke company and studies of the theater and immigrant communities could reveal the image’s full cultural significance. By examining such sources, we can unpack the complex relationship between commercial imagery and the construction of social identity.