Looking for info on: T206 Lithograph/Artists

[Jeremy102175]

Hi everyone,
I'm doing a bit of research on the T206 set and have had some difficulty finding information on the lithographs. If anyone could point me in the right direction that would be fantastic. Ideally I'd like to find out who the artists were, if they were directly commissioned by the American Tobacco Company, if any of the original lithographs still exist etc.
Thanks so much!
-Jeremy

[G1911]

Originally Posted by Jeremy102175

Hi everyone,
I'm doing a bit of research on the T206 set and have had some difficulty finding information on the lithographs. If anyone could point me in the right direction that would be fantastic. Ideally I'd like to find out who the artists were, if they were directly commissioned by the American Tobacco Company, if any of the original lithographs still exist etc.
Thanks so much!
-Jeremy

The artist names are unknown. Only one of the ATC issue T card sets has the lithographer known, T30, by the explorer Albert Operti.

They were not directly commissioned by the American Tobacco Company. A series of lithography firms worked essentially as outsourced branding and marketing departments. Pictured subjects (we have the Ball letter and the actual contract for pugilist Fighting Dick Hyland) signed their rights to the lithographer, not the tobacco firm. The artists would have worked through the lithography firms.

None of the original artwork is known to us today.

[Jeremy102175]

Thanks so much for the info!