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Duke’s Cigarette Cards
Coins of All Nations, 1889

Case Study #1: Curation

The curated selection of photographs, prints, and drawings for each nation are chosen from the NYPL Digital Collection by doing a keyword search for the nation featured on the cigarette card. Results are narrowed down to the decades preceding and following 1889, the year Duke’s Cigarette Cards, Coins of All Nations was released.
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  • Do the curated materials share visual characteristics with the cigarette card? How are they different?
  • What is the point of view of the curated materials? What narratives are presented?
  • Does seeing the curated materials offer an alternative impression of the caricature on the cigarette card?
  • How might these images have influenced Americans’ idea of people from this nation?
  • Choose a card and create your own set of curated materials using the NYPL Digital Collections.

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Siberia.

Siberia.

Cigarette card, 1889

Coins of All Nations (Duke's Cigarettes)

George Arents Collection, The New York Public Library. "Siberia." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1850 - 1959. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47de-353b-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Siberian convict said to be more than 100 years old in 1885, sent to Siberia at the age of 65.

Siberian convict said to be more than 100 years old in 1885, sent to Siberia at the age of 65.

Photograph, 1920

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "Siberian convict said to be more than 100 years old in 1885, sent to Siberia at the age of 65. (K)" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1920. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-41ce-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Danilovich Dr., Degayev, Dikovski, Dmokhovski, Mikhailova.

Danilovich Dr., Degayev, Dikovski, Dmokhovski, Mikhailova.

Photograph, 1920

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "Danilovich Dr., Degayev, Dikovski, Dmokhovski, Mikhailova" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1920. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-41aa-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

George Kennan. Tomsk, Western Siberia, August 1885.

George Kennan. Tomsk, Western Siberia, August 1885.

Photograph, 1920

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "George Kennan. Tomsk, Western Siberia, August 1885." The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1920. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-41a3-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Exiled People.

Exiled People.

Photograph, 1920

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. "Exiled People" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1920. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-41a5-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99