The Original Alice: A Timeless Inspiration

IRONIC. In 1888, a tobacco company created something extraordinary

by accident. Duke's cigarette advertisements featured traditional costumes from every corner of the world—Japanese

kimonos, Scottish tartans, Turkish robes. What started as marketing became cultural

preservation. Before mass production, before department stores, every culture told its story through

clothing. Every pattern had meaning, every color told a story,

every piece of jewelry marked identity and status. These aren't just costumes—they're cultural fingerprints,

captured just as the industrial age began erasing these traditions. Ironically,

while Duke's factories mass-produced identical cigarettes, their illustrations celebrated the handcrafted uniqueness that industrialization was