The black cat

We went to another auction last week and bought some new stock which we are really pleased with. I’m already starting to pick up the story of another family who moved around France because the man of the house was a bank manager.

I was charmed by this handmade card. I imagine that the little girl was staying with her grandparents when she received this card from her favourite Uncle! The stamp is real, but he’s painted a false postmark over it.

So that’s how it was done!

In 1900 this is how childless parents acquired their offspring. Babies cost 20 marks!

Swings

An hundred years ago children were enjoying the same things as they do today. When were you last on a swing?

There goes the train!

You will have to click on this card so that you can see the train going over the viaduct. I’ve also scanned the back so that you can see the beautiful handwriting. This postcard was sent in 1903 or before. Any messages had to be written on the front of the card up until that year.





Also, what a simple address for a large city, the name of the street and ‘Paris’; I don’t think it would be delivered today. I googled the address, 45 Rue Alexandre Dumas, and discovered that Alexandre Dumas (The Three Musketeers) used to live at 45 Rue du Mont Blanc!

Hot sand between my toes

This postcard appealed to me because of the energy the girls are putting into their digging. It reminded me of days at the seaside with my sisters. Look how warmly wrapped up the women are who were watching. The card says ‘Les enfants au travail’ – Children at work. Judging by the stamp, the postcard was sent in the early 1920’s.

Our shop!

Anyone who reads any of my four blogs on Blogspot for the next day or so will see this identical post. After humming and ha-ing for several months Rob and I have decided to open an eBay Shop for our postcards. A lot of people have asked why we haven’t done it before. The simple reason is that we sell small price items and a shop isn’t always viable in that case. As there have been recent changes to charging on ebay accounts for professionals in France we thought we’d give it a go.

If you have a moment could you please have a look and tell me what you think of the colour scheme etc. I know it’s in French, that’s our main market, although we do sell all over the world. Please leave a comment if you have anything to say or a question on any of the cards.

Thanks

Something a little different

This card breaks with the usual tradition as there is no image. The reason for this is when the card was sent postcards did not have pictures on*. It was posted in March 1880 to someone in Leipzig from Bern. In those days post was stamped at arrival too. The writing is hard to read, at first I thought that it was written in German but I’m not sure. The card is in excellent condition for it’s age.

*I’ve discovered that the first images were 1870, but they weren’t common.

Jardin du Luxembourg

Before we came to live in France, Rob and I spent an Easter weekend in Paris. We saw lots of sights, the weather was warm and sunny and there weren’t too many tourists. We sat out and ate at the Franklin D Roosevelt restaurant neat to the metro station of the same name (if I remember rightly) it was really as romantic as everyone says. My favourite place was le Jardin du Luxembourg; a famous Parisian park. This is what it was like in 1907.

Jasmin

What a lovely job, harvesting the jasmin. The micro-climate around Grasse on the Côte d’Azur is ideal for growing flowers and you can visit the various perfumeries in the area today. These ladies were gathering the harvest around 1909.

This is my 100th card!

The Belle Epoche

This pré 1903 postcard from Monte Carlo (where else?) really captures the spirit of the belle epoch. Should our gambling friend choose the red or the black? Even the artist Albert Guillaume’s signature is a work of art, I think. Click on the card for a better view.

La Tartine – The Slice – Die Brottschnitte

I was really pleased to see this postcard of a painting by Alfred Schlomka. Click on the image to make it bigger and look at the expression on the little girl’s face. His paintings seem to have been exhibited for several years around 1910 by the Société des Artistes Francais. This one was included on the ‘salon’ of 1914.

The last time I wrote about a postcard with a painting by A Schlomka I had a mini Schlomka family reunion in my comments box!

The unhappy princess

This is King Léopold II of Belgium with his daughter Clémentine. Before she came of age she suffered a lot because of her mother’s difficult temper. Her father gave her permission to travel without her mother which helped a lot.

The problem with being a princess is that you aren’t allowed to marry who you would like. Clémentine wanted to marry Napoléon Victor Bonaparte, who was descended from Napoléon and therefore not of royal blood. Her father threatened to disinherit her. She was already in her 30s and could feel her biological clock ticking away. Prince Napoléon and Clémentine decided to wait until her father died. She didn’t have to wait for much longer after this photograph was taken. Her father died in 1909 and when her cousin, Albert, became King, gave her permission to marry and she really did live happily ever after!

Les Reines de la Mode

I spent a long time trying to find out who this young lady was. Perhaps a Can Can dancer around 1907 at the Moulin Rouge? Anyway, she was beautiful enough to be photographed by Henri Manuel. Here is another of his postcards and a brief biography

Les Arceaux

As soon as I saw this postcard I thought of Salvador Dali. The twisted trees and the arches stretching into the distance I suppose. I don’t have a date for this card. Here are some more views of Montpellier. Can you spot ‘les Arceaux’?

Poisson d'avril

Two cards today to celebrate the first of April. Hope you didn’t get caught out by an April fool’s trick. It isn’t clear why fish are special on this day but jokes are played – only till noon. There are lots of postcards with lovingly held fish to be offered to loved ones. Fortunately they weren’t scratch and sniff!

“Pretty April fish
Bring her these flowers
So that their subtle perfume
Celebrates her heart”

Happy Easter!

This young man would be nearly a hundred years old today - I wonder if he's still alive? The card was sent in April 1917

Lucy-le-Bois

A corner of the middle ages. This is another little village I’d like to visit some time. The card was sent in 1925. I haven’t been able to find a recent picture of this street, I hope that it is still there.

Princesse Alice

A few days ago we received a lot of 1000 cards from an auction house. They were really special and we’re rather pleased with them. If you read the post about the auction catalogue (a different auction to come), you will know that some of the pictures are of Prince Albert 1st of Monaco. The card above was also taken on his yacht "Princesse Alice". I think it’s a very interesting coincidence.

Here you see the launching of a weather kite for the exploration of the atmosphere. I’m not really sure but I think that the man standing on the left reaching up to the kite is the Prince.

The sparrow charmer

This man was charming the birds out of the sky in the Tuileries, a Paris park, as early as 1868. I don’t know the date of this card, sometime at the beginning of the 20th century. Later in his life he started to go blind. When I wanted to find out more about him I discovered that he was a popular figure and captured the imagination and admiration of many passers by.

He reminded me of the lady who owned the house I rented when I first left home. She was well into her 80s and always busy. One afternoon I went into the garden we shared to hang out some washing and she was on her hands and knees trying to weed the vegetable patch. She was having a difficult time because she was surrounded by birds, sparrows; thrushes, blackbirds, they all got in her way as they tried to pick up the insects and grubs she disturbed by working. She had to keep brushing them away, but they just kept coming back. She too was a very special person.

Something different

For once I’m breaking my rules and not showing you a postcard. We received a catalogue
last week for an auction too far away for us to attend. This is the back cover. Two of the lots consist of photographs from the archives of the photographer and journalist Mr. Chusseau-Flaviens, he specialised in royalty.


First is The grand Duchess Irina Alexandrovna, then The Tzarevitch and The Grand Duchess Marie Nicolainna. Then there are two pictures of The Prince of Monaco; Prince Albert 1st, one in his laboratory on his yacht “Princess Alice and the other with his famous collection at the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco. The German Emperor Guillaume III is at the keel of his yacht. The last is the most interesting; An operation is being performed by the professor Jonesco. The patient , anaesthetized, has his stomach open and is looking at the photographer while smoking a cigarette. (To calm his nerves perhaps?)

(My spellings are taken from the French, I’m afraid, as usual click on the image to see in more detail)