Gail & Ax Tobacco

Gail & Ax Tobacco was a commercial entity active in the production of collectible advertising ephemera in the late nineteenth century, with documented work dating specifically to 1889. The company issued small-format prints primarily used as trade cards, distributed to promote tobacco products such as Navy Long Cut.

This body of work is organized under the Novelties series (N122) by collectors, reflecting the common contemporary practice of using diverse, visually interesting subjects to encourage brand loyalty. These historical prints constitute significant documentation of commercial lithography during the period.

Fifteen unique Gail & Ax Tobacco prints from this series are represented in major institutional collections, establishing their historical and museum-quality significance. Examples of these detailed prints often feature still life arrangements or carefully rendered single objects, including Blue feather fan, Book, Cup of Violets, Folded Screen, and Folded paper.

The presence of these works in archives like the Metropolitan Museum of Art highlights their value not only as advertising history but as fine examples of nineteenth-century printing techniques. Due to the age of the original artifacts, much of this collection now resides in the public domain, making high-quality prints and downloadable artwork available for research.