05/07/2019
A “WHALE” OF AN ADVENTURE
“PINOCCHIO, GIDEON AND FOULFELLOW PONDER THE FATE OF GUESTS SWALLOWED BY MONSTRO THE WHALE AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE MINIATURE FANTASY WORLD OF STORYBOOK LAND”
Official DISNEYLAND, California Postcard
Ref: 0111-0353
I have never been to Disneyland in California (one day though) so I have not seen this Whale which was part-of one of the original rides when the park opened in 1955, and a ride which is still going. There is a Storybook Land in Disneyland Paris, but they do not have Monstro on their ride.
05/07/2019
ROYAN
LE FRONT DE MER
LE MARCHE
Bd F-GARNIER
(The Waterfront
The Market
Boulevard F. Garnier [I think])
Published by
M. BERJAUD (Bordeaux)
Ref: 4709
I recently posted some postcards showing the church that is in Royan, France, so I thought I would also post this nice deckle-edged card (possibly from the 1950’s). I bought this one from an antique ‘Postcard & Stamp’ shop I visited in the same region of France. This one has been in my collection for around 6 to 7 years.
05/07/2019
EXPOSITION UNIVERSELLE DE PARIS 1889
Paris Universal Exposition 1889
Published by
GILLES VOLLE (FAX: 0145789369)
PMVP CLICHÉ JOFFRE
Ref: 40
A modern postcard depicting an old poster (possibly even one used on a contemporary postcard, although I suspect not as it is too pictorial for the postcards of the time which usually had an area for a written message on the front) for the 1889 Universal Exposition. This postcard is from my Eiffel Tower collection. I like this one a lot.
05/07/2019
THIS IS A DAYDRIVE
DRIVE 37
Official Promotional Postcard Issued by the
AA (Automobile Association) BASINGSTOKE
This is an older advert map postcard issued by the AA which was sent out to people (almost certainly people who were already members of the AA) to advertise the then upcoming new AA ‘Touring Guide to England’. This is an interesting card as it would equally appeal to a map collector as it would someone who collects advertising as a theme.
REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD
These postcards were posted out using a POSTAGE PAID pre-printed postage marker. They also have a pre-printed advertising message with a printed signature. All of this was obviously printed in advance. The addresses were printed on labels which were then attached to the cards before the cards were posted out. Considering that it is probable that hundreds, if not thousands (potentially) of these cards were posted out, this is the first and only copy I have seen.
05/07/2019
CRUCIFIX
By
DAVID BEGBIE MRBS
1988
Artwork piece using steelmesh
Published by
THE SHRINE SHOP
(THE SHRINE OF OUR LADY OF WALSINGHAM)
2 COMMON PLACE, WALSINGHAM, NORFOLK
The theme of ‘Religion’ is not a popular one with collectors, but this does not stop members of the non-collecting public buying religious postcards on visits to churches, cathedrals, shrines and other places of a religious nature. As can be expected, because of the high number of these such places, postcards of this type are extremely common. All this does not mean that there are not some ‘really’ attractive and interesting religious artwork-based cards out there, or that some of the church images are not spectacular (they do make great souvenirs of any visit to a church or such like). I found this one, which I really like, in the dedicated shrine shop in the village of Walsingham in Norfolk. I think this design would appeal to those who like art cards as the piece is attractive.
05/07/2019
NORTH NORFOLK
Published by
CHARLES STENNER
2018
On my recent trip to Norfolk (writing these notes always makes it sound as if I am constantly travelling around!) I found this nice railway themed postcard in a souvenir shop on the front at Wells-Next-The -Sea, a small coastal town which is very popular with tourists. When I saw this one, I could see that it is a standard styled multi-view postcard, but it also has some nice train images on it.
05/07/2019
DANCERS PRACTISING AT THE BARRE
By
EDGAR DEGAS (1834 – 1917)
Published by
THE BRITISH MUSEUM
Ref: E034400
This was one of the museum postcards I picked up on my most recent visit. I have always liked the work of Degas and many of his images of dancers have appeared on postcard because of their popularity. This one I thought is rather unusual and was one I had not seen before. Museum gift shops are a great source of images which otherwise don’t or hardly ever appear on other cards.
05/07/2019
SUPER CALIN
SUPER HUG
Design by
SOPHIE DOLLE
Published by
EDITIONS CARTES D’ART
Ref: G.P 425
I bought this postcard several years ago in France. It has rounded edges, which was a popular card option a few years ago. The design appealed to me because of my love of Superheroes as a theme. The cat clearly has been drawn with a superhero mask and cape, and to be fair it is also a cute image.
04/07/2019
STAMPS – THE UNIVERSAL HOBBY
14c US POSTAL STATIONERY POST CARD
Issued by the
UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE
Issued 1986
(Referenced in the 28th Edition of ‘THE POSTAL SERVICE GUIDE TO U. S. STAMPS’ as 14c Stamp Collecting – UX110)
One of the many US official pre-paid postal stationery post cards issued over the years. This one appeals to me as I also have an interest in stamps and the stamp design pre-printed on this card is unique to this card (it was not released as a separate individual postage stamp), so this is the only item you can find it on.
04/07/2019
MUNICIPAL BUILDING,
WASHINGTON, D. C.
Published by
B. S. REYNOLDS Co., WASHINGTON, D. C.
Ref: 3736
This is one of the postcards I found whilst I was crossing the US by train last year. I picked it up in an antique’s shop in Flagstaff, Arizona (so just a few miles away from Washington!). Having been in Washington D.C. the week before it appealed to me and it was only 50 cents, so less than 50p to me at the time (a bargain I thought). I also thought this was a great photograph of a very nice, but official, looking structure.
This building is now called the JOHN A. WILSON DISTRICT BUILDING (apparently popularly just called the WILSON BUILDING). It houses the municipal offices and chambers of the Mayor and the Council of the District of Columbia, so still seems to maintain is original municipal origins. The structure was renamed to the John A. Wilson building in 1994 and before this was called the DISTRICT BUILDING, although clearly here on this postcard it shows that it was once also known as the Municipal Building, but this may just have been the buildings use rather than its name and it may have been known both as the DISTRICT and MUNICIPAL building.
The building was completed in 1908, so clearly this postcard post dates this year, probably quite a bit I suspect as I think this card post dates World War 1, but it may have come before. Interestingly the building was dedicated on the 4th July 1908, so today is its birthday (which I did not know before deciding to post this on the webpage today – a massive coincidence or what?).
Although the building has always been used as the municipal offices for the District’s local government, there was a period during World War II when it also housed 200 visiting servicemen. In 1977 two gunmen took hostages in the council chambers, this incident is known as the '1977 Hanafi Siege'. Two people were killed and Councilman Marion Barry was hit by a bullet during this incident. This occurred on the 5th floor and one of those killed was a 24 year old reporter named Maurice Williams. The Press Room in this building is now named in honur of Mr Williams. The other fatality was a DC Protective Services Police Officer named Wesley Cantrell. So, this building, despite only having an official usage throughout its life, does have some interesting history. This history adds interest to the card itself.
04/07/2019
Happy 4th of July to my American Followers
GREETINGS FROM PHILADELPHIA
NATIONAL POSTCARD WEEK
MAY 4 – 10, 1986
Published by
EMILY DI VENTO (Philadelphia)
Printed by
3 – STARR PRESS
This is from the 2ND PRINTING
Limited to 300 individually numbered postcards
What could possibly be more indicative of the 4th of July celebrations than the Liberty Bell, so here is a National Post Card Week postcard from 1986 which depicts a simple outline drawing of what is probably one of the most famous bells in the world.
04/07/2019
Happy 4th of July to my American Followers
JOIN THE
ARMY AIR SERVICE
BE AN AMERICAN EAGLE!
Published by
JOSEPH F. MORSELLO (Philadelphia)
Ref: F52
This postcard depicts a World War I American recruitment poster for the Air Service. The image is from part of the collection at the AIR FORCE MUSEUM, W-PAFB, OHIO. The text on the front of this card gives you a nice potted early history of the American training system for flyers.
03/07/2019
“THERE’S A LITTLE FRIEND FOR
LITTLE CHILDREN”
Published by
RAPHAEL TUCK & SONS
OILETTE
Ref; “ILLUSTRATED HYMNS” (Series)
Postcard No. 9446
A nice illustrated postcard using the words of part of a hymn with an appropriate picture. This is from what was probably the UK’s greatest postcard issuing company; RAPHAEL TUCK & SONS.
REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD
When I picked this one up, I was intrigued by the typed advert on this side:
POSTCARDS
OF WELL KNOWN HYMNS
………………………………………
10 IN EACH PACKET. 5 DESIGNS
3D. POST FREE
There is a lot of useful information included here such as original trade cost, number of designs and how many were in a sales packet. It is unusual things like this which help-out people tracking down information about cards in their collection. Having looked at this one I wonder if this is from the company itself (I doubt it somehow), or it’s from an independent supplier (which I think is more likely, unless anyone knows otherwise). I think it makes the card more interesting.
03/07/2019
BRANDENBURG GATE
Photography by
BERNARDUS MARINUS STEENBEEK
Graphis by
OLIVER DURAND
Published by
GLOBALGUIDES. NET – BERLIN
Ref: BP-59
I picked up this great postcard design on my trip to Berlin a month or two back. It makes for a great souvenir of my trip, but it also makes for a great addition to my Military themed postcard collection. I thought it was a very clever ‘Then and Now’ design. I liked this one a lot.
03/07/2019
FIFTH ANNUAL
NATIONAL POST CARD WEEK
MAY 1 – 7, 1988
Published by
THELMA MORRIS
Printed by
3-Starr Press
In the US it has always been common for collectors, and some dealers of course, to design their National Post Card Week postcard designs. Obviously, this produces a wide range of quality and printing, some being very professional and others sometimes less so, but I like the cards which have a less professional and more personal approach. On this design Thelma has depicted a selection of US postage stamps.
03/07/2019
2e RENCONTRE
D’ILLUSTRATEURS CREATEURS
ET COLLECTIONNEURS
CARTOPHILES
SARCELLES 14 DECEMBRE 1986
Design by
PATRICK HAMM
Printed by
NAVILIAT
For the artist – Published by the Artist Patrick Hamm
Limited edition of 500 (individually numbered) examples
This postcard was Patrick’s issue for a postcard event in France held on the 14th December 1986. As was often the case with these cards produced by the artists for a single event the number printed is quite low, just 500 in this case. In the 1980’s and 1990’s these cards were quite expensive, the price of this card being at least £5 at the time. They have not fully maintained this high catalogue price, mainly because of the drop in the interest in these since those decades passed by. Things are not all bad though as this example here still seems to sell at £4 (maybe still £5 to £8 if signed by the artist, and many were).
REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD
My copy of this postcard is number 491 and it is also one of the copies which was hand signed by the artist (signature in blue ink to the right side of the cards individual number). Signed copies are not that unusual as the cards were sold by Patrick himself on his own stand at the show/event and thus people buying the card would often ask him to sign it. I still think the addition of a signature ads a few pounds to the value of the card.
01/07/2019
JOY RIDING IN THE CATSKILL MTS [Mountains]
Published by
THE KINGSTON SOUVENIR Co., KINGSTON N. Y. [New York]
Made in the U.S.A.
Ref: 24537
This is a nice early US issued cat art postcard from sometime around the second decade of the last century. Cat postcards, at-this-time, were extremely popular and this one has the added-bonus of an additional early aeroplane. With all the interest on the front it would be no surprise if something on the reverse side was missed, but if you turn this card over something becomes immediately apparent…
01/07/2019
CRYSTAL PALACE, LONDON
Published by
VALENTINES (VALENTINES SERIES)
I have a small collection of Crystal Palace postcards which I have collected because of the buildings connection with the story of John Logie Baird and British television history (I like to collect postcards of structures which were connected to the early days of television in different countries, like the Eiffel Tower in France, The Empire State Building in the US and the Crystal Palace and Alexandra Palace here in the UK).
This photographic postcard was posted to Italy in 1905 from the UK so a one penny stamp was required. The photograph here on this postcard is one of my favourites.
30/06/2019
BALLOONPOST – AUSTELLUNG
(Balloon post exhibition)
BAD TATZMANNSDORF
Official Balloon Exhibition Postcard
The front of this postcard depicts a nice photograph of a hot air balloon which would be reason enough to buy this postcard, but the reverse side has some nice added philatelic interest
30/06/2019
UNTITLED
‘ROSETTA STONE’
SHAPED WOODEN POSTCARD
EXCLUSIVE ‘BRITISH MUSEUM’ POSTCARD
Published by the museum
Last week I visited the British Museum to visit an exhibition (more details can be found from posts made on facebook whilst I was there), but I also checked out the main, and very large central gift shop area. Here I found some new wooden shaped postcards of exhibits held by the museum. This Rosetta Stone wooden card was my favourite because I have always been fascinated by the story behind this stone and the importance it played in our understanding of hieroglyphics.
The stone was found in 1799 and bears three blocks of text with the top two in ancient Egyptian using both Hieroglyphic script and Demotic script. The bottom text is in Ancient Greek. Because the three were found or assumed to bear the same message (a decree issued in Memphis, Egypt in 196 BC) knowledge of ancient Greek allowed the stone to be used to decipher Egyptian Hieroglyphs. Lithographic copies and plaster casts were made and circulated amongst European museums and scholars as it was believed that the stone could, as mentioned, help decipher hieroglyphs. Having said this, it still took over twenty years of study before the scripts were fully translated (the Greek text first in 1803), and longer before a true understanding of hieroglyphs could be made, but without the discovery of the Rosetta stone it may not have happened. The full story of the work behind the study of the Rosetta stone is long and fascinating and worth looking up.
The stone was found by the French in 1799 and later taken from them by the British after their defeat of the French in the area. The stone was transported to the UK and has been on near continuous display in the British Museum since 1802. I have visited the museum many times and I always take time out to visit the Rosetta Stone and marvel at how something so simple in appearance could be so important.
30/06/2019
NUDIST BEACH
By
PETER ADDERLEY
Published by
SALMON LTD
Ref: 09/80/04/17
In their:
SEASIDE DAYS (Series)
I found this amusing card whilst on a recent trip to Well-Next-The-Sea in North Norfolk. I thought it was quite amusing. I briefly considered placing it under my censored tab, but quickly realised that this is a harmless and funny illustration which only has naked bottoms on show. Every other body part is cleverly covered, or the person is depicted standing so that we only see their bottom. I like the fishermen in the middle holding their catches in a very appropriate place!
This card is one of a set of nudist character cards, all of which appeared to be beach themed, but this large set piece was the card image that I liked the most. A clever card I thought (and another example of what we will now be missing with the demise of Salmon Ltd postcard publishing)
29/06/2019
“MARVEL”
ROYAL MAIL PHQ STAMP CARD SET
PHQ Set 454
(postcards that reproduce the Royal Mail’s stamp releases)
Stamps issued – 14TH March 2019
(As always, I have my copies used with the appropriate stamp applied to the front of the card and cancelled first day of issue with a special hand stamp)
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
SPIDER-MAN
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
Clearly, I loved this set, what with being a massive superheroes fan, postcard wise as well as TV and Film, not to mention the comics themselves. So, I was delighted when this set was announced, but many in the stamp collecting world here in the UK were not so impressed, which is a shame as the subject matter is highly topical, what with the release of ‘AVENGERS – ENDGAME’ and its record breaking takings.
CAPTAIN MARVEL
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
Another topical addition as the Captain Marvel feature film was also released this year, the first Marvel superhero film to be headlined by a female character (DC beat them to the first film with their ‘Wonder Woman’ film – which I think is the best of the DC films since the Nolan Batman ones).
CAPTAIN BRITAIN
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
This one has already appeared on the webpage as the result of a special cachet at the MCM Comic-Con event. There I mentioned that as a kid I picked up the very first Captain Britain comic and was a fan for some years. He was the first UK Marvel superhero.
PEGGY CARTER
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
Possibly an unusual character as she was a human agent with no special powers, she was though the love interest of Captain America during WWII. This card fits nicely into my TV collection as there was a related TV series based on this character from the recent Captain America films. The series ran to two seasons. The character also appears in Captain America and Avengers movies.
UNION JACK
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
I believe this character was chosen because of his UK roots, although I suspect to many the character is little known. The character went through three incarnations although the first appeared in July 1976 in a comic called ‘Invaders’ (issue 7). In this first comic the character is shown as part of a superhero team in the UK during World War 1. His real name was James Montgomery Falsworth, a retired country squire. The character had an interesting history told through the comics in flashbacks. Not a classic character, but a nice UK touch to the series.
£1.45 Value
CAPTAIN BRITAIN
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
The first stamp from the four-stamp miniature sheet. The advance publicity for this stamp sheet described it as:
“This set of five bonus marvel stamps form part of a ten-panel comic book strip in which the Mad Titan, Thanos, launches a deadly attack on the world. This original, never-seen-before story with a unique British twist (look out for Trafalgar Square and the Gherkin!) has been specially written and designed by Marvel and is available exclusively from Royal Mail”
(TOP)
MINIATURE STAMP SHEET
Full Miniature Sheet Card
Left side of stamp sheet attached to full card
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
(BOTTOM)
MINIATURE STAMP SHEET
Full Miniature Sheet Card
Right side of stamp sheet attached to full card
Published by
ROYAL MAIL
Ref: PHQ 454
Because the stamp sheet was a long one two cards were needed to give the collector the full sheet over two cards, as depicted here on my two copies. This cutting up of the stamp sheet is a common thing where the sheet is either too long or tall for placing just one on a card.
29/06/2018
NOMADE
CHLOE
EU DE PARFUM
Official free advertising sample postcard
It has been many years since I have found a free perfume postcard anywhere her in the UK (they were once very popular and could be found in almost any perfume department in stores – but that was some years ago). So, it came as a bit of a shock as we crossed Europe that Jo found this card in one of the stores she was shopping in (I think I was elsewhere looking in a souvenir shop…. probably!). A free postcard is always nice, and this one has the extra bonus of being a novelty card because of its peel-off tab which would reveal the smell of this particular-advertised fragrance.
29/06/2018
GRUSS AUS WIEN
Published by
EDITION TAUSENDSCHOEN
Copyright: BEHR DESIGN
Ref: PK 123
Made in Germany
Whilst we are looking at the famous white horses of Wien (Vienna), see previous posting, I thought I would also show you this other rather spectacular artwork image which uses these horses as its main design. This is a very eye-catching postcard with its ‘really-lovely’ design, deckle edging and the application of glitter, which makes the card shine and glimmer when you tilt it in the light. What’s not to like about this one? When I saw this one, I had to have it
29/06/2018
WIEN – LIPIZZANER
Published by
EDITION OSTERREICH
Ref: Motiv – PK2
The white horses of Vienna are famous for their show at the Spanish Riding School which has been going for more than 450 years. This artwork design depicts one of these famous horses and I bought the card whilst recently visiting Vienna.
29/06/2018
EMILE-BERTIN
6,000 TONNES CRUISER
Published by
HELIO M. LESCUYER, LYON
This nice black and white photograph depicts a French military cruiser. The card has been used on the front with two stamps in a gutter block (the stamps have a stamp shaped plain label attached between them). These stamps have been cancelled with a special: ‘SALON DE LA MARINE – PARIS – 28 MAI [May] 1944’ cancellation. It never ceases to amaze me that even with a major war on (World War II obviously) and your country being occupied by a foreign force (the German’s, again obviously), locals still managed to put on exhibitions and shows, especially stamp related ones. This card appealed to the postcard collector in me and the postal history and stamp collector. It should also be noted that this card was postmarked just nine days before D-Day, and that adds a totally different perspective to this card.
REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD
Here you have a block of four stamps applied top right which have been cancelled with the same special cancel as appears on the front of this card. There is also a clear strike of this cancel applied centre left side, something which you commonly find on French postal material, especially the souvenir type cards and envelopes from exhibitions and shows.
29/06/2018
SUPERMARINE SPITEFUL XIV
Published by
AFTER THE BATTLE
Ref: P21
As I posted an army themed card, I think I should also do one which is RAF themed. This one is from the company AFTER THE BATTLE who issued large collections of postcards featuring military vehicles and aeroplanes. They also publish a magazine called AFTER THE BATTLE which has now been running since 1973 (with issues released in February, May, August and November each year). Most of the postcards were issued during the 1980’s, but they are not difficult to source and can be found amongst many dealers ‘Military’ stock.
REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD
This card has had a gutter pair of the 80th Birthday of the Queen Mother stamps applied. These have been cancelled with a special ‘SPITFIRE 50TH ANNIVERSARY – EASTLEIGH, HAMPSHIRE – 5TH MARCH 1986’ pictorial hand stamp, which adds some each collectability to the card. I think this also makes the card more attractive.
29/06/2018
COLOURS’ BADGES AND UNIFORM TYPES OF THE
107TH REGIMENT BENGAL INFANTRY, later THE 2ND
BATTALION ROYAL SUSSEX REGIMENT
From a poster printed c. 1924
Printed & Photographed by
GARDINER GRAPHICS LTD, EASTBOURNE
Today is ‘ARMED FORCES DAY 2019’, so I have started todays postings off with a military themed postcard from my collection. This postcard depicts a great piece of military ephemera, although the poster does have some creases (those marks are not the postcard having been bent, the creases are on the original poster).