STAMPED TO ORDER POST CARDS

1918 – 1926

1 PENNY

TWO UNCUT BLOCKS OF TWO

Section 7 – Great Britain

(Printed to Private Order – Page 72)

Reference 22b

The strip of two on the left still has the text along the bottom of the sheet which reads ‘BE SO CUT UP THAT NO SINGLE CARD SHALL EXCEED IN SIZE THE OFFICIAL….’ This is a nice addition and makes this a very interesting block

STAMPED TO ORDER POST CARDS

1921

1 PENNY

INCREASE OF PRINTED MATTER RATE TO 1d

ROYAL ARMS OMITTED

A BLOCK OF TWO AND A SINGLE WITH UNCUT BORDER

Section 7 – Great Britain

(Printed to Private Order – Page 72)

Reference 18a

20/06/2020

UNTITLED

ROBOT POSTCARD

Published by

DEAN MORRIS CARDS

Ref: DPO 53

Printed in the UK

For anyone who collects sci-fi themed postcards, or just who loves a really good robot image, this is a cracking issue

20/06/2020

TRIBUTE TO HEROES AND WUHAN

Chinese issued Postcard

Issued March 2020

Official Item

Ref: (10 – 8)

Across Chine many Covid-19 (Coronavirus) themed postcards have been issued, quite a lot of these are restricted to certain provinces, even certain cities, although I do not know how far the distribution of this particular postcard was, but it could very well be a small localised distribution. It is a very impactive design though and was no doubt a popular one.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

This postcard has a nice Covid-19 themed special cancellation which reads “Unite as one to Fight the Epidemic”. I bought this postcard for this special cancellation as it adds something more unusual to my collection.

ATTACK THE VIRUS

Chinese issued Postcard

Issued March 2020

Official Item

Ref: (10 – 7)

A companion postcard to the above card and used with the same cancellation on the reverse side (see below). Both cards are very collectible and quite hard to source at-the-moment, especially used with this cancellation.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

19/06/2020

COW AND CALF

Chinese Official Postal Stationery Post Card

2012

Issued by the Chinese Postal Authority

A nice card, and one for my animal collection if it was not for something on the reverse side which places it into my current new theme – Covid-19

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

This was posted on the 11^th May 2020 and has a Guang’han City Covid-19 coloured label affixed which depicts the two Chinese stamps issued related to the pandemic. This label is cancelled 13^th May 2020. A great piece of postal history related to the pandemic.

18/06/2020

BISONS

ZOO DE LA PALMYRE

Photograph

J. M. LEDUC

Published by

ZOO DE LA PALMYRE

Ref: No 76

This French zoo is a delight and is one which I have visited a few times during my trips to the area of France where my in-laws had their house. The zoo has a long history of issuing postcards with many different being available in the past. With all the issues that zoo’s have had during the lockdowns I had hoped that this one had survived, and it looks like it has, and it is to re-open on the 21^st June.   

18/06/2020

LULU BISCUITS

LE-FEVRE-UTILE

‘LU ECOLIER’

Novelty Metal plate postcard

‘CARTE-METAL 15x21

Published by

EDITIONS CLOUET

Ref: 29089

I bought this metal postcard over ten years ago whilst on one of my holidays in France. I like novelty postcards and one made of metal certainly fits that bill. This is also a nice advertising poster design as well, and I do like these biscuits.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

18/06/2020

DAME VERA MARGARET LYNN ….. RIP

20^TH March 1917 – 18th June 2020

British singer, songwriter and entertainer. Became the ‘Forces Sweetheart’ during world war II when she gave concerts for troops in Egypt, India and Burma. Probably best remembered for the songs “We’ll Meet Again”, “White Cliffs of Dover”, “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square” and “There’ll Always be an England”.

17/06/2020

ALEXANDRIA

BOULEVARD SAAD ZAGLOUL

Published by

LEHNERT & LANDROCK, CAIRO

Ref: 2209

This is a great old photograph, with some truly awful artificial colouring, but with lots of interesting stuff going on. I love the old street lighting stands and the large shop sign on the left side; THE CENTRAL STATIONERY & BOOKSTORES, and above the store is a sign for ‘DR FAYAD’, who must have had a surgery above the store. I am also intrigued by the man in the white uniform like clothing who can be seen in the road centre right. He looks like he might by a local police officer, or similar with his large belt and what looks to be something down his left side like a stick, or sword (I suspect stick). The card may not be in excellent condition, but the image makes it worth keeping in my mind.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

ALEXANDRIA

FRENCH GARDENS – GENERAL VIEW

Published by

LEHNERT & LANDROCK, CAIRO

                             Ref: 2210

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

17/06/2020

KENTISH HOPS

Unknown Publisher

Printed in Kent

Ref: 95

With the lockdown now slowly lifting, although social distancing is still supposedly very much in place, it may ease up the issue around picking of crops that farmers have been having. This may well have been the case with hops, I just don’t know, but I would not be surprised if hop picking has suffered. In the times that this postcard was posted, 1907, whole families would travel to Kent annually to pick hops, but those days are long gone.

18/06/2020

Update - my thanks to Richard & Mary Wheeler who emailed to tell me this card is published by a company called 'Young and Cooper' - it is their logo which appears on the reverse side, a locally well known one apparently - this was also apparently a Maidstone based publisher, and the card was postmarked Maidstone and sent to a Maidstone address. 

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

16/06/2020

“IF YOU HAD YOUR 100 YEARS TO COME AGAIN,

WOULD YOU MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES?”

“AYE, LAD – BUT I SHOULD START A LOT EARLIER!”

By

FITZPATRICK

Published by

BAMFORTH & CO., LTD

Ref: “COMIC” Series No. 1778

I bought this one for the BBC microphone, but it is also a very funny card

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

16/06/2020

GREETINGS FROM

NEW JERSEY

(BLUE/BEACH SCENE)

LANTERN PRESS VINTAGE ART

Published by

LANTERN PRESS (SEATTLE, WA)

Ref: Image #7044

(retail price $0.49)

This is another postcard from my friend Frank in the US. It is another Lantern Press published card, a company probably producing some of the best current modern American postcard designs, although having said that this is a reproduction of a vintage postcard. There has been an interest in reproducing old postcard images on modern postcards for many years now and it is something I approve of as it is always possible that someone seeing and buying a new postcard depicting an old postcard then becomes interested and … just maybe… then looks out for and buys a real old postcard. Maybe some future collectors begin this way.

14/06/2020

ASSOCIATION DES ESCARGOPHILES

ADVERTISING POSTCARD

Artwork by

RICK GEARY

Published by

EDITION DES ESCARGOPHILES

Ref: COLLECTION 1991 No 26

Limited Edition of 300

Edition des Escargophiles published a wide range of artist styled postcard designs and as their name implies, they often had a snail as part of their design (a snail was their trademark). The French company was the brainchild of a French postcard artist called ‘Sizi’ and when he signed his artwork with a drawing of a little snail, which all explains why this stagecoach is being pulled by a giant snail.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

14/06/2020

CAROSELLO

MAXI-CARD

Stamp issued 27^th November 2017

“IL PATRIMONIO ARTISTICO E CULTURALE ITALIANO”

CAROSELLO

SESSANTESIMO ANNIVERSARIO DELLA PRIMA

MESSA IN ONDA

“The Italian Artistic and Cultural Heritage”

Carousel

Sixteenth Anniversary of the first

Broadcasting

(Translation of postcards text)

Published by

POSTE ITALIANE – FILATELIA

I found this on eBay recently and although I knew about the stamp release, I was unaware of this superb maxi-card. Carosello [Carousel] is an Italian television advertising show which ran from 1957 to 1977 and which was made up mainly of short sketch comedy films which were a mixture of live action, animation (of various types) and puppetry. It is, or was, very popular, with a viewing audience of 20 million. I am not sure how well known this programme was outside of Italy, I certainly had not heard of it, but it does make for a great television themed postcard.

13/06/2020

JOHN LENNON

By

LINDA McCARTNEY 1968

Published by the

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

This is the longest period-of-time that I have not visited London, but then travel was banned, unless for work, and most of the places I would normally visit have been closed. When things do open-up I will head back to our capital (probably by train and probably, as the rules seem to be stating, wearing a face mask), and the National Portrait will be one of my first ports of call.

13/06/2020

Happy Birthday to Her Majesty the Queen

HM QUEEN ELIZABETH II

Photograph:

PAUL RATCLIFFE

Published by

FISA

Ref: London (series) 607

One of the cheap postcards which, other than in a lockdown, you can find on sale all over London in the souvenir shops aimed at the tourists and visitors to the capital. Just because a card is cheap, though, and extremely common, does not mean it does not deserve a place in your collection.

As an aside the normal celebration of the Queen’s birthday is the ‘Trooping of the Colour’, which has appeared on many postcards down through the years, but this year this was not held, for the first time since 1955. Instead a smaller event was held in Windsor where the Queen has been during lockdown.

12/06/2020

NATIONAL POSTCARD WEEK

MAY 6^TH. THROUGH 12^TH., 1984

LOOKING TOWARD 100 YEARS

OF POSTCARD COLLECTING

IN 1993

Published by

JOHN McCLINTOCK

1984

It is a strange feeling to be looking at a postcard that was looking forward nine years towards 1993 when we are in 2020 which leaves us looking back twenty-seven years (yes, 27 years!) to the same date. Another great postcard from the 1980’s during the height of the personalised American postcard publishing period.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

The reverse side of some of these 1980’s American personal issue postcards can also be quite interesting.

12/06/2020

TRUMP 2020

KEEP AMERICA GREAT!

Sign for the 2020 Presidential Election Campaign

To get US President Donald J Trump relected [sic – as spelt on the card]

Published by

POSTCARDSAND ME

My own political views aside, I collect postcards related to all political themes and sides. It should also be said that TRUMP has been an interesting postcard subject as I had expected to find many comic and derogatory postcard issues, but surprisingly this has not been the case. I found this pro-Trump postcard on eBay and have added it to my political collection (the outcome of this years election will be interesting) 

12/06/2020

LOCKDOWN IN SOUTHEND 2020

Published by

MARK ROUTH (yep! Me!)

Ref: markspostcardchat Card no. 1

I have published a few postcards in the past, but with everything that we have been going through these past three months I wanted to record it locally by the issue of a postcard or two (I opted for two). All the photographs used across the two postcards were taken by me during my daily exercise walks. Each has been printed in an edition of 500 copies.

LOCKDOWN IN SOUTHEND 2020

Published by

MARK ROUTH 

Ref: markspostcardchat Card no. 2

09/06/2020

LONG LIVE THE BAT

BATMAN – 80 YEARS

80^TH ANNIVERSARY

STAMP SHEET AND POSTCARD FOLDER

Published by

POS MALAYSIA

FRONT OF ENVELOPE WHICH CONTAINS THE FOLDER

This is a great item, published by the postal authority of Malaysia. Inside this envelope is a folded card which is made up of a postcard on one side and a holder on the second card in which is a stamp sheet made up of three different Batman stamps. So, you get a stamp sheet and a postcard in one sales item. As you know I do like something unusual and this definitely fits that bill.

REVERSE SIDE OF ENVELOPE

This is the reverse side of the main envelope containing the mentioned folded card.

POSTCARD FRONT

BATMAN

Published by

POS MALAYSIA

This is the front of the A5 sized postcard half of the folded card. This shows a number of images of the comic book character Batman, as portrayed in the comics (graphic novels as they are sometimes also called when gathered together for publication).

STAMP SHEET

Published by

POS MALAYSIA

This is the stamp sheet which is inside the folded card, on the opposite card to the postcard depicted above

Photograph

Inside of the folded card

This shows the reverse side of the postcard (top – upside down) and the plastic sleeve held stamp sheet at the bottom

Photograph

Reverse side of postcard

Shown the right way up

Photograph

The outside two sides of the folded card

The postcard is shown at the top and the reverse side of the card which holds the stamp sheet at the bottom

Photograph

The Outer Envelope and the folded card, which comes inside it, showing the postcard side (top)

09/06/2020

OFFICIAL JAPANESE POSTAL STATIONERY POSTCARD

2020

Plain Backed Postal Stationery Post Card

With a Mickey Mouse pre-printed stamp design

Official Japan Postal Stationery

These simple postal stationery postcards are a common issue in Japan and each year many different versions are produced. This one is from early this year and has a completely blank other side and just the pre-printed stamp and a 2020 fan design along with the required bottom text and address boxes top right. I brought this one for the Mickey Mouse stamp design

OFFICIAL JAPANESE POSTAL STATIONERY POSTCARD

2020

Plain Backed Postal Stationery Post Card

With a Snoopy pre-printed stamp design and a Peanuts characters block with the year 2020 underneath this design

Official Japan Postal Stationery

This one is a companion card to the Mickey Mouse one above.  

09/06/2020

ASTRONAUT RIDING WHALE

Vector with Linework

Lantern Press Original Poster

Published by

LANTERN PRESS

Ref: Image #98904

My friend Frank in the US recently sent me one of President Trumps coronavirus guidelines postcards which went out to every American household. Enclosed with this card was this superb piece of artwork on a card. I think this is a great design (although that would need to be a baby whale for the astronaut to be able to ride it at this size!!!) A great postcard and my thanks go out to Frank for sending it to me.

09/06/2020

STOP COVID-19

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

I did a podcast today with the Postcardist in America, the theme was Coronavirus and collecting the pandemic as a theme, something which I have been doing and which Frank (the Postcardist) knows I have been doing. These ‘Cavalier Postcards’ issues were discussed. I believe these may have been the first UK issued Covid-19 themed postcards, if not the first they were certainly issued early-on-in the Covid-19, Coronavirus story.

WASH YOUR HANDS

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

             From a set of Nine Postcards

WORK FROM HOME

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

NO NEED TO PANIC

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

STAY AT HOME

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

SORRY WE’RE CLOSED

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

COVID-19

STAY HOME

SAVE LIVES

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

BREAKING NEWS

COVID-19

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

From a set of Nine Postcards

QUARANTINE AND CHILL

Published by

CAVALIER POSTCARDS

              From a set of Nine Postcards

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARDS

This is the standard reverse for all nine postcards, and all the cards from this company

08/06/2020

ASHINGDON ROAD, ROCHFORD

Unknown Local Publisher

Ref: 78221

Rochford is just up from my hometown of Southend. It is also the location where I worked the longest as a police officer, so I know it well, especially Ashingdon Road which I must have driven along a thousand times or more. This, and a few other reasons is why I love this old photographic postcard showing an image of this road. It was posted in 1917, which was of course during the first world war. In my time the Rochford Hospital side entrance to the mental health ward was off to the left side between the building and the far end of the stretch of bushes on the left side. Sadly, my mother-in-law spent some months here due to her dementia and again I was driving along this road again. When I bought this postcard, quite a long time ago now, it cost me £8. I suspect it would cost me more than double that now, possibly treble.

REVERSE SIDE OF ABOVE POSTCARD

I like the cancellation used here; ‘ROCHFORD S. O.’ dated 12 September 1917, the S. O. probably stands for ‘Sub Office’ (but S. O. also was used for ‘Sorting Office’ and ‘Station Office’, but where this cancel is concerned it seems most likely that, due to its location, this was a sub-office). The message also holds some interest:

“The house at the end where I have marked is where we are billeted. I had your letter this morning. Will write later. Am now sitting in a field writing letters

Love. May (? Or possibly Mary – but I think it’s May)”

So, May was ‘billeted’ in Ashingdon Road, and this was in 1917, so was May a ‘land girl’ working on one of the local farms? It seems possible, although some of the Rochford Hospital was turned over to the military during WW1, so maybe May was stationed here, possible as a nurse if it was still used for medical situations. Its things like this, the stories, known or unknown, behind the history of a postcard which I really enjoy looking into.