About Postcards

King Insurance Company British Royalty Postcard Series

2009-07-09T13:02:00.002+01:00

These advertising postcards were published for King Insurance of London in the early 1900’s. They are beautifully designed and are from a large series which, aptly for the company, depict the Kings of the English and British Monarchy.

I think there were 48 postcards in the series. The first in the set features Egbert who, as King of Wessex from 802, was overlord of much of England and is generally thought of as the first English King. The most recent King I’ve seen depicted is William IV who ruled until 1837 and preceded Queen Victoria. I’m guessing that the series was published around the time of the 1902 coronation of Edward VII, though Edward seems not to have been depicted (do let me know if you know otherwise).

For another British Royalty postcard series see Raphael Tuck Kings and Queens of England Postcard Series

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W H Grant Edwardian Woven Silk Postcard

2009-07-09T10:32:00.002+01:00

Click the image to see a larger version

A love letter postcard woven in silk; actually it's two love letters, read alternate lines for a romantic version and then a comic one. This woven silk postcard was manufactured in the Edwardian era by William Henry Grant of Coventry England, it’s a very nice example of its type.

It's said that Grant learnt his trade while working for Thomas Stevens (after whom woven silk picture panels are named Stevengraphs) but went on to establish his own silk weaving company. By the late Victorian era both companies were well established and producing a wide range of woven silk products including bookmarks, decorative ribbons, woven pictures (Stevengraphs), and so on.

With the arrival of the early 1900's postcard boom both companies started producing woven silk postcards. The range of subjects was broad with each company producing designs that are now much sought after by many the deltiologist.

The woven silks produced by Stevens command slightly higher prices than those of Grant though there seems little rational justification for this as their respective quality and availability levels seem otherwise comparable.

There are several categories of William H Grant silk postcards; Greetings, Verse, images of Royalty and Military leaders, Exhibition Souvenir Postcards, Steam Ships, topographic views, and more. Most carry the company name and the text "Woven in Pure Silk" to the base of the postcard border (there are several border styles) All are highly collectable and the company output is well documented.

It should be mentioned that Thomas Stevens and W H Grant were not alone in this marketplace. There were many other less prominent British manufacturers and some very notable competition from the French silk weavers such as Neyret Freres and others.

For another kind of silk postcard you might want to take a look at the entry for WW1 Embroidered Silk Postcards.

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Chromo Litho or Chromolithography Postcards

2009-07-04T20:15:00.002+01:00

In the mid 1800's an intoxicating world of colour printing arrived. Previously printers had relied on hand colouring of monchrome images. Chromolithography was the first method capable of repeat printing of multi-color images and it prevailed on postcards published in the late 1800's and early 1900's.

If you use a magnifier to look at an early colour postcard you will see solid blocks of colour in a variety of sizes and shapes, postcards using later (more efficient but less pleasing) technologies display the colour as a series of evenly sized dots.

Chromolithography was an expensive and labour intensive process requiring considerable skill. Based on lithography (where paper is pressed to a flat inked surface) it used stone blocks or zinc plates onto which parts of an image had been drawn using an oil based medium. There was one stone for each colour of the image. Postcards were printed in multiple impressions, each block adding another very carefully positioned colour layer.

The postcard artist produced the original watercolour or oil painting. The print company employed highly skilled lithographic artists who would transfer the designs by hand onto limestone printing slabs. The litho artists worked in reverse and produced outline image frames with one outline for each color

The technology was perfected in Bavaria and resulted in many early Eurpoean postcard publishers printing their product in that country.

Attached are two rather nice Art Nouveau examples published by Raphael Tuck.

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Edwardian Advertising Postcard - Joseph Rank Flour Miller

2009-07-04T11:52:00.003+01:00

Postcards were extensively used as an advertising medium in Victorian and Edwardian Britain. Some were used for customer correspondence, many given away with the advertised product; others were issued at trade exhibitions or were given to schools and Sunday Schools for use as 'reward cards' for children.

Attached is a poster style Edwardian postcard advertising the company we today know as Rank Hovis McDougal. The postcard dates from the early 1900's and features the original 1901 company name "Joseph Rank Limited" and their, then new and state of the art, Clarence Mills in Hull Yorkshire. To the top of the card is a brand name "As You Like It Flour", a bread flour that the company continues to offer today.

Joseph Rank (1854 - 1943) was the son of a Hull miller. He worked for his father from his early teens but it wasn't a happy arrangement and, in1874 when his father died, Joseph was forced to make his own way in life. It was a struggle at first with cheap imported American flours undermining the domestic market. Joseph Rank persevered and went on to pioneer the use of steel roller mills and efficient manufacturing processes that brought him considerable success from the late 1800's onwards. A convert to Methodism when his business started to flourish; Joseph Rank donated generously to good causes throughout his life. In 1935 Rank was awarded of Freedom of the City of Hull, partly in recognition of his good works for the poor.

Early 1900's Advertising postcards such as this are avidly collected today, both by deltiologists and by those with a wider interest in industrial history. For more about Edwardian advertising postcards click on the link in the content section (top right of this page).

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The Cocorico Postcard Series

2009-07-02T14:14:00.002+01:00

A popular British postcard collector’s price guide describes the Cocorico series as "Probably the most celebrated of all French series. There are 12 designs only. Artists include De Feure and Steinlen." It seems a short (though accurate) entry for such a sought after series, so here is a little more information and an image of one of the postcards.

Cocorico (red cockerel) was a French magazine focused on satire, literature and the arts. Produced by the artist Paul Emile Boutigny the journal was published in 63 issues between December 31st 1898 and May 1st 1902. Boutigny used the magazine to champion Art Nouveau, and he used what he considered to be the greatest artists of the Belle Epoque to illustrate its covers and content. A series of 12 postcards were produced, each one featuring a cover illustration from the magazine, and it is these postcards which are sought after.

Above is a postcard from the series, the artist was Arthur Michael and the illustration is from the cover of Coccorico issue 34.

The other eleven postcards in the series were illustrated by: Louis Doës, Joseph Faverot, Giorgio Kienerk, Georges de Feure, F Kupka, Charles Léandre, Alphonse Mucha, Louis Popineau, Auguste Roubille, T Steinlen, and A. Willette,. All of the postcards feature a graphic design to the left encompassing the Cocorico name, the artists name, a space to the right for the senders message, and an undivided back. They are rare.

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Football Postcards Rabbits and Politicians

2009-06-28T15:35:00.001+01:00

Another sport, another rich theme for the postcard collector. Association Football, commonly called football or soccer.

As with other sport postcards, collectors focus on teams, football grounds, and the game itself. From the Victorian era onwards you'll find; photographic postcards depicting teams and players, artist postcards (often comic) depicting the game, and more.

The greatest demand is for postcards featuring early 1900's League Teams and players. Examples include the Football Teams series issued by Rotary, by Wrench, and by others. These postcards are very hard to find. Amateur teams, especially when the playing year is identified, are sought after. Artist illustrated football postcards from the early 1900's are both widely available and very much collected.

I've attached three postcard images. The first and the third postcards are the work of illustrator Harry Rowntree, they have a common theme of Football on the Brain, of heading the ball, the rabbit postcard being a particularly nice example. The other postcard uses football to deliver a political message. Dating from the early 1900’s and illustrated by Percy Bradshaw (he signs as PVB.) the postcard depicts 'John Bull' representing the English struggling to fend off foreign competition while politician Joe Chamberlain (the figure on the right) comes to his rescue.

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Playing Card Postcards

2009-06-26T14:33:00.001+01:00

Above is a Louis Wain cat postcard with a playing card theme. It’s a nice example that would appeal to both the Wain enthusiast and to those who collect playing card postcards.

Vintage postcards with a playing card theme are very popular and, with a little effort, they can be found today in considerable variety. There are numerous examples in the style of court cards (Queen of Hearts etc), many of them featuring Edwardian stage personalities as the Queen or King. Comic postcards depicting hapless card players or offering an explanation of a playing card term can be a little harder to find. Similarly there are also advertising postcards with a playing card theme, postcards explaining the rules of a game, and so on.

The above early 1900s Tom Browne postcard illustrates the Bridge term 'Hearts are Trumps', it’s from a set of six. It's entirely possible to build a small postcard collection on the theme of a single playing card game; you’ll find examples by Browne, Lance Thackeray, Rene Bull, and many others. Similarly artist illustrated playing card postcards, such as the Gaston Noury court card below, offer many possibilities for a visually pleasing collection.

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Collecting Cricket Postcards

2009-06-25T10:38:00.001+01:00

Early postcards with a sport theme have always been very popular with collectors.

Cricket postcards are collected in three main categories; players and teams, cricket grounds, and comic cricketing postcards. Prices vary considerably; a few pounds for photographic postcards featuring unidentified early 1900's teams through to several times that amount for the best caricature, comic and named player or team postcards.

Above is a personal favourite. A simple Cynicus comic postcard dating from the early 1900's and featuring a much feared 'demon bowler' of an opposing village team. It's a splendid example of its type, encapsulating the spirit of the village game.

Below is another good comic cricketing postcard; early 1900's again and featuring a village player emulating the great run scorer Gilbert Laird Jessop. The postcard artist in this case was the very popular Donald McGill whom we otherwise associate with saucy seaside postcards.

If your sport of interest was played in the late Victorian or early Edwardian era, and everything from Angling to Yachting was, then establishing an associated postcard collection can be fun, informative, and rewarding.

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Multi Baby Postcards

2009-06-22T17:16:00.000+01:00

In the first few years of the 1900's there was something of a craze for montage postcards featuring babies and children. They became known as multi baby postcards.

The earlier examples came from the German & Austrian publishers and those published by Bruder Kohn of Vienna (BKWi) are particularly sought after. In the years leading up to the 1914 1918 First World War French publishers took over, often using photo montage images.

It's a fun theme for the collector, perhaps not a major theme but a bit of light relief. The postcards are available in remarkable variety and, in spite of their age, at prices that everyone can today afford. You'll find babies hatching from eggs, babies as politicians or as military men, babies in cabbage patches, in cars, in planes and hot air balloons, and many more.

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Lucky Black Cat Postcards

2009-06-20T16:22:00.001+01:00

Every postcard collector eventually focuses on a collection theme. Animal postcards, cats in particular, are a good example. Many collectors focus on the major artists; Louis Wain, Boulanger, the (somewhat neglected) Arthur Thiele, Ellam, and others. Then we have collectors who base their collection around cat breeds (Persian, Long Haired, and so on), again most collect artist images though early 1900’s photographic postcards are also in some demand. Comic cats are very popular and have several sub themes; Felix the Cat, suffragette cats, military cats, cat choirs, and so on.

In England, Black Cats are considered a symbol of good luck, elsewhere it’s different I think, and black cat good luck greeting postcards can be found in some variety. Above is a nice example with black cats each wearing an early 1900’s good luck charm. From left to right we have; a lucky four leaf clover, a heart, a golden slipper, and a lucky pig.

Below is another lucky black cat example. This is a novelty postcard, the cat is made from fabric applied to the card and the lucky horseshoe is metallic.

It’s silly but, one of my favourite lucky black cat postcards was a Christmas Greeting postcard with the cat seated and smiling before a brick wall as snowballs thrown in its direction magically diverted to miss. I also love Wain.

Cat postcards are easily found; prices vary considerably from just a couple of pounds for routine examples to tens or even hundreds of pounds for the finest examples by Wain.

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Gottlieb Theodor Kempf von Hartenkampf Postcard

2009-06-18T16:03:00.003+01:00

I'm a postcard dealer, what was once my hobby is now my business and it’s really nice to routinely handle so many collectible postcards. An occasional delight is discovering something quite rare or unexpected within a larger collection of more ordinary postcards. The two attached Austrian Secessionist Jugendstil artist postcards are excellent examples.

The postcards were published by Raphael Tuck, they have undivided backs and date from the very early 1900's. The series number is 4031 and series name 'Continental Series' (Tuck published several different 'Continental Series'). The artist signature is a simple but distinctive G. Th. Kempf , you can click on the pictures for a larger view.

Gottlieb Theodor Kempf von Hartenkampf was an Austrian painter of the late 1800's and early 1900's. His work included both portraiture and, as on these postcards, graphic design. Gottfried Kempf was born in 1871; he studied at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts (winning their annual prize in 1891) and went on to work in the same city.

Super Postcards.

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Umberto Brunelleschi Postcard

2009-06-13T16:25:00.000+01:00

A splendid early 1900's artist postcard.

The artist was Umberto Brunelleschi.

Born in 1879, Brunelleschi studied in Florence before moving to Paris in 1900 where he worked as an illustrator, signing his early work as Harun-al-Rashid (Aroun-al-Racid) in deference to its Turkish 'orientalism' influence.

For nearly two decades Brunelleschi illustrated books and Parisian fashion magazines before his 1914 return to Italy where, for the duration of the war, he continued to work as a magazine illustrator. After the war, back in Paris, Brunelleschi designed stage sets and costumes. In the 1920's and 1930's he designed for La Scala in Milan , for the Folies Bergere in Paris, and for New York’s Roxy Theatre. Brunelleschi is remembered as the costume designer for the performer Josephine Baker.

Today his work is well documented and Brunelleschi postcards are among the most sought after of the era.

Umberto Brunelleschi died in Paris in 1949.

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Champagne Cat

2009-06-12T13:15:00.000+01:00

June 12th 2009
I'm a grandmother again!
Congratulations to the proud parents!.
x

1911 Standard Bread Campaign Postcards

2009-06-11T17:15:00.000+01:00

White bread or brown? Wholemeal bread?

The attached comic postcards date from 1911 when the above questions were issues of national interest in

Great Britain

The story began in 1880 when Mary Anne Yates Corkling (using the name May Yates) formed the Bread Reform League. The wind and water powered mills of

Great Britain

were being displaced by industrial roller mills. Bread was being produced from fine white flour (just the starch content of the wheat) rather than the robust wheat meal produced by the traditional millers. Yates was concerned that the poor were being denied the nutritional benefit of traditional bread. The Bread Reform League had medical profession support and Yates campaigned on this and related food reform subjects for more than 30 years.

In 1909 the Bread Reform League proposed that a formal standard for bread be established. This campaign for ‘Standard Bread’ was adopted by the Daily Mail Newspaper who, in January 1911, published a manifesto signed by prominent medical men demanding that bread should be “made from unadulterated wheat, flour containing at least 80 per cent, of the whole wheat, including the germ,". The campaign, which was backed by prizes for the best ‘standard loaf’, was a considerable success. Commercial bakers recognised the need to conform if they were to survive and the owners of the roller mills adapted their machinery to meet the bakers demand for flour of the necessary standard. It’s also said that, for a short whole at least, home baking was rediscovered.

Postcards such as the attached are typical of the era. At first sight simple comic images but with a little effort their documentary value is uncovered.

Poisson d'Avril Fishy Fools Postcard

2009-06-10T13:00:00.001+01:00

In England we celebrate April Fools day on April 1st, a time for practical jokes. In France there is a similar tradition on the same day with the curious name Poisson d'Avril (April's fish) where children would try to attach a paper fish to the victim's back without being noticed.

The attached early 1900’s French postcard is a Poisson d'Avril postcard, the baby has a nice red fish attached to his back.

The origins of the Poisson d'Avril and the related April fool traditions are disputed. One explanation suggests that it dates from 1582 when Pope Gregory ordered a replacement of the ‘Julian’ calendar (named after Julius Caesar) with the calendar we use today (the Gregorian calendar). The introduction of the Gregorian calendar in Catholic countries shifted saints and feast days. Many people refused to accept this change and others made fun, made fools, of those traditionalists.

Italy, another catholic country, is also said to celebrate April fools day with a fishy theme, calling it Pesce d'Aprile. I understand that Pesce d'Aprile postcards exist though, to date, I've not encountered any.

While not commonplace Poisson d'Avril postcards can be found in some variety and can be a fun theme for the collector.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

F Mackain and his Sketches of Tommy’s Life

2009-06-08T16:04:00.001+01:00

Collectors of WWI comic postcards will be familiar with two artists in particular; Bruce Bairnsfather with his Fragments from France postcard series, and F Mackain with his Sketches of Tommy’s Life series.

While Bairnsfather applied a wickedly dark sense of humour to his illustrations, Mackain offered a much gentler and more observational view of the everyday life of British soldiers in France during the 1914-1918 First World War.

Attached are two postcards from F Mackain’s Sketches of Tommy’s Life series. Unlike the thoroughly documented Bairnsfather little is known about F Mackain. The postcards were published in France for sale to British soldiers and issued in four sets of ten; In Training, Up at Base, Up the Line, and Out on Rest. So it’s 40 postcards in total, a very nice series to collect.

For more on WW1 & other military postcards please refer to the contents list and search box at the top right of this page.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Leonem Italian Art Deco Postcard

2009-06-06T17:32:00.003+01:00

Just a picture this time. The postcard artist signs as LeoneM. Italian Art Deco and published by Degami with a series number 1047.

As with all images on this site you can click on the picture to see a full size version.

Very nice.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Exposition di Faenza 1908 Hohenstein Postcards

2009-06-06T17:25:00.002+01:00

In 1908 the Italian town of Faenza (now a city) held an international exhibition celebrating the third centennial of the 1608 birth of physicist and mathematician Evangelista Torricelli.

The work of Torricelli (he discovered the principle of the barometer).were central to events but, in the prevailing spirit of 'National Awakening' the exhibition also celebrated the work of Italian artisans, artists, and craftsmen. There was a ceramics exhibition, an international exhibit of paintings, embroidery, farm machinery, ironwork, woodwork, sculpture, and so on.

As part of this "Universal Exposition Torricelliana" a local publisher Aldo Albonetti published a celebratory series of postcards. He wanted the postcards to be designed by the best 'Italian' artists of the time.

Above are two superb examples designed by the artist Adolf Hohenstein; a Russian by birth but working in Milan at the time and thought of as the Father of the Italian poster. Superb images from a very hard to find series.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Sergio Bompard Postcard Artist

2009-05-31T16:03:00.001+01:00

Attached are three very nice Italian fashion and glamour postcards dating from the time of the First World War. Italian artist postcards of this era are much collected, for other examples see

Little seems to be known about the artist, S Bompard (Sergio Bompard?), though his postcard and magazine illustration output was considerable.

The subjects that Bompard chose for his work are familiar; young women wearing the latest fashion of the era. You will also encounter romantic couples, art deco fashion studies of women with companion greyhound dogs, and greeting postcards with children. Once seen, the style is easy to recognize and the postcards almost always carry the artist’s distinctive signature.

The bathing belle postcard was published in Milan in 1918, the seated flapper woman in 1919, and the woman wearing the Turkish influenced headwear is of a similar date though posted in 1921.

Beautiful postcards.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Postcards and the Edwardian Rinking Craze

2009-05-28T13:36:00.001+01:00

Every era has its social crazes and the Edwardian era was no exception. The first decade of the 1900’s saw our Edwardian ancestors go through periods of mass enthusiasm for postcard collecting, for Ping Pong, for Diabolo juggling, and for Roller Skating (which they referred to as ‘Rinking’).

With postcards documenting most aspects of Edwardian life it‘s no surprise to find the comic postcard artists of the era illustrating the Rinking craze.

Roller skates date from the mid 1700’s but it was the Victorian era improvements to skate design that prompted the first roller skate craze in the 1860’s.

The Edwardians rediscovered skating in 1909. The subsequent craze was relatively short lived but, at its peak, touched all levels of society. The rink was the place to be and to be seen. Newspaper accounts speak of members of the aristocracy and ‘society’ being seen at the Rink; of large crowds attending as spectators to watch the good and the great, the young and fashionable, the rough and ready, all having fun.

Every town seemed to have a rink; cities offered a considerable choice. Rinks accommodating many hundreds of skaters were common, most had tiered seating for similar numbers of spectators; the noise must have been considerable.

Morning sessions were attended by beginners. Later in the day it was the turn of the fashionable to attract large audiences as they glided around in their finery. Evening sessions seem to have been best attended by the working man and woman, a little rougher than those in the daytime but an important social event for those involved.

The comic postcards attached depict the fun of Edwardian Rinking; they also hint at the opportunities Skating provided to meet members of the opposite sex. The postcards date from around 1909, were published by A & G Taylor, and the artists initials are to the lower right corner.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

J Dédina Women of Beauty Postcard Set

2009-05-23T16:11:00.003+01:00

What else can I say but that these are gorgeous images.

They are from a set of twelve postcards published in the first decade of the 1900's. Each postcard representing a month of the year. The artist was J Dédina (1870 - 1955?) and the postcards were published in Prague.

The postcard images above are of May and July. Below is a montage of the complete set which you can click on to see a larger image.

Postcard collectors attempt to collect complete sets, the above is an excellent example of the added pleasure that a set can bring. They just look so much nicer when assembled together.

While Edwardian postcard publishers generally issued their cards in sets of six or occasionally as sets of ten or twelve, odd numbered sets also exist. Seven was a popular number, evidenced by Day of Week postcards and Seven Deadly Sins sets. Heavenly Virtue sets were issued in threes and sevens. Bamforth issued their vast Edwardian Song postcard series as singles, as threes (mostly), some fours and some fives. Tuck and others published Royalty sets that extended towards the hundred. There were also 'composite' sets, cards that were intended to be sent one at a time and then assembled to form a single image.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Oliver Typewriter Company Postcards

2009-05-22T16:54:00.003+01:00

The Art of Writing through the centuries

I’m rather fond of late Victorian and early Edwardian advertising postcards. A variety of formats exist and, for me, their charm is the mix of graphic design and the discovery of the history of the advertised product or company.

The three early 1900’s postcards you’ll see here advertise the Oliver Standard Visible Writer, a typewriter that allowed the typist or stenographer to see what he or she was typing.

These postcards are part of a set of twelve illustrating the history of “The Art of Writing through the Centuries”. The series begins with Assyrian Cuneiform writing in 2500BC and, via the list below, traces events through to the Victorian arrival of Oliver and his Visible Writer typewriters. Published by Lecoq & Mathoral of Paris, the postcards were intended for the British market. I’ve seen this series in two forms; the one depicted here and another published in 1904 which has the rectangular message space on the front overprinted with a months calendar (each of the 12 cards having its own month).

The complete postcards set depicts

- Assyrian Cuneiform writing c2500 BC

- Egyptian Hieroglyphs c2000 BC

- Hebrew, depicting Moses and stone tablets c1500 BC

- Chinese and the era of Confucius 550 BC

- Greek in the era of Pericles 500 BC

- Roman and the Emperor Augustus 25 BC

- Charlemagne, a founder of schools 800 AD

- The Middle Ages with 13th century monks writing illuminated scripts

Russia

and the influence of Peter the Great c1700

- William Caxton and his invention of the printing Press in 1477

- The French Revolution in 1789

- The arrival of mechanisation with The Oliver Standard Visible Typewriter.

I've tried to identify the typewriter on the final postcard in this series and as a result suspect that these postcards may have been produced to promote the European market arrival of their third generation model (please let me know if you can confirm this).

Thomas Oliver was a Canadian Methodist minister who built his first typing machine from rubber and pieces of metal cut from tin cans. He subsequently resigned his ministry and went on to form the Chicago based company that, from the final years of the 1800’s, bore his name.

When Thomas Oliver died in 1909 the company was in its heyday, it was the 1920’s recession and subsequent competitive forces that drove the company into liquidation in 1926.

For more about the Oliver Typewriter Company an internet search is the place to start. Wikipedia have a good summary of the company and its history, there are also some excellent typewriter collectors’ sites with extensive information. An internet patent search will turn up early material with the usual technical drawings and claims of originality.

Below is the final card in the set with an image of the new machine and its user.

For more about advertising postcards see

Vibrona Tonic Advertising Postcard

Ancient Order Of Foresters Friendly Society Postcard

Alcohol and Advertising Postcards

Poster Style Advertising Postcards

Charles Buchel and Herbert Beerbohm Tree Postcards

John Hassall Advertising Poster Postcards

Edwardian Theatre Poster Postcards

Advertising Postcards and Reward Cards

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Louis Wain Sporting Cat Postcards

2009-05-19T16:52:00.007+01:00

I’ve written before about the artist Louis Wain and his postcard images of manic cats.

Attached are three splendid examples with a sporting theme. The postcards were published by Valentines; we have Football (Soccer), Golf, and Horse Racing. I’ve seen a Cricket postcard from this set and there will be others.. Note how Wain has depicted football as a particularly rough game, as a game for thugs with the ball being ignored in favour of fighting the opposition. Golf seems to be a game played by gentlemen with players discretely smiling as a competitor cuts into the turf . Finally, Louis Wain presents Horse Racing as pure fun with cats as jockeys and dogs as horses.

A nice sporting trio.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Birger Swedish Art Deco Artist Postcards

2009-05-16T15:07:00.002+01:00

A short post this time but with some super images. Three Scandinavian Art Deco greetings postcards, all of them New Year cards. The publisher was Axel Eliassons of Stockholm and the artist signs as Birger.

Scandinavian Art Deco postcards, when compared with their Italian and French equivalents, seem to be both less well known and undervalued.

Enjoy.

For more Art Deco postcards try the following links or just use the search box (top right).

Rylander Art Deco Postcard Artist

Rie Cramer Art Deco and Children Postcards

Art Deco and Glamour Tito Corbella Postcards

C E Shand Art Deco Postcards

Jennie Harbour Art Deco Postcards

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.

Private Moyse, a Buffs Regiment Patriotic Postcard

2009-05-15T13:43:00.002+01:00

Patriotism, poetry, and a postcard.

This postcard is from an early 1900s series which illustrated the history of the 3^rd (East Kent) Regiment, popularly named The Buffs. The postcard depicts a captured British soldier, Private John Moyse, electing to be executed rather than to ‘kow-tow’ (kneel and bow) before a local Mandarin.

Moyse was serving with the Buffs in

China

during the Second Opium War (1856-1860). Together with an Irish sergeant of the 44^th East Sussex Regiment and some Sikh sappers, Moyse was captured while escorting the troops Rum supply. The

China

correspondent of the Times reported as follows.

“Some ‘Seiks’, and a private of the Buffs, having remained behind with the grog carts, fell into the hands of the Chinese. On the next morning they were brought before the authorities, and commanded to perform kotou. The Seiks obeyed; but Moyse, the English soldier, declaring that he would not prostrate himself before any Chinaman alive, was knocked upon the head and his body thrown on a dung hill.”

The newspaper accounts of Private Moyse and his preference for death before dishonour inspired Sir Francis Hastings Doyle, who later became Professor of Poetry at Oxford University, to write the verse “The Private of the Buffs”.

Last night, among his fellow roughs,

He jested, quaffed, and swore:

A drunken private of the Buffs,

Who never looked before.

To-day, beneath the foeman’s frown,

He stands in Elgin’s place,

Ambassador from

Britain

’s crown,

And type of all her race.

Poor, reckless, rude, lowborn, untaught,

Bewildered, and alone,

A heart, with English instinct fraught,

He yet can call his own.

Ay, tear his body limb from limb,

Bring cord, or axe, or flame:

He only knows, that not through him

Shall

England

come to shame.

Far Kentish hop-fields round him seemed,

Like dreams, to come and go;

Bright leagues of cherry-blossom gleamed,

One sheet of living snow;

The smoke, above his father’s door,

In gray soft eddyings hung:

Must he then watch it rise no more,

Doomed by himself, so young?

Yes, honour calls!—with strength like steel

He put the vision by.

Let dusky Indians whine and kneel;

An English lad must die.

And thus, with eyes that would not shrink,

With knee to man unbent,

Unfaltering on its dreadful brink,

To his red grave he went.

Vain, mightiest fleets, of iron framed;

Vain, those all-shattering guns;

Unless proud

England

keep, untamed,

The strong heart of her sons.

So, let his name through Europe ring—

A man of mean estate,

Who died, as firm as Sparta’s king,

Because his soul was great.

The above verse and associated tales of patriotic courage were subsequently learnt by many a British schoolboy and more than 100 years later the story was still cited as an example of British strength and pride.

However, there are doubts as to the accuracy of the Victorian news reports. Step away from the newspapers and there is talk of drunkenness, of a soldier with a history of insubordination, and of a fanciful tale being told by another soldier.

In Robert James Leslie M'Ghee’s 1862 book “How We Got into Pekin” the account of events is given as follows…

We lost a small party consisting of a non commissioned officer of the 44th, a private of the Buffs, and eight or ten Hong Kong coolies on this day ……. They were bringing some commissariat stores to the front, and amongst the rest some rum. Whether they had a supply of spirits of their own, or put a "leak" into the keg, I cannot say, but the soldiers both got drunk, lost their way, stumbled a party of Tartars, and were taken prisoners (after showing some fight), with the exception of one who managed to escape.

We felt certain that they would be murdered, and that if the Europeans had any chance of escape, the Chinamen had none, as the authorities would naturally be exasperated against their own countrymen. In a few days, much to our surprise, the 44th man and all the coolies were sent in, but poor Moyse of the Buffs was missing

The 44th soldier gave a very uncertain account of the whole matter, drawing largely upon his Irish imagination. He said that they had been brought before the "Gineral", and that Moyse was ordered to "kowtow", and upon his refusal to do so was put to death; that he had then been forced down and had his face rubbed in the dust. ……………….. and when asked how he came to understand all this, not knowing the language, his truly Irish reply was "Ah! sure, thim fellahs has no saycrits like us" One thing however was clear that poor Moyse had lost his life in a chivalrous spirit; ........

Similarly, in his 1865 book “Peking and the Pekingese During the First Year of the British Embassy at Peking”, the military surgeon Dr David Field Rennie gave his account of events as follows….

Private Moyse, through the imaginative powers of the sergeant of the 44th (who with fourteen of the coolies were sent back), was represented as having been beheaded because he refused to kow tow before Sang ko lin sin. The story (a pure fiction) was thought at the time "sensational" and therefore allowed to get into circulation. Private Moyse died in the hands of the Chinese ……… from what is represented as sickness which, it is not unlikely, was of a nature resulting from drink, as both soldiers were intoxicated at the period of their capture.

Whatever the truth, the news reports and verse concerning Private Moyse inspired British patriotic pride for decades to come and this postcard serves as a nice example encapsulating that mood.

For more information about collecting military postcards try some of the following links.

From About Postcards. We trade as Allotment for theme postcards and as ukPostcards for British topographic.