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Print Collection 12: The Postcards

Ravin de Sainte-Berthe et la Vallée de l'Ailette, N. 622

Postcards had become popular with both society's elite and the broader population in pre-war Europe and America. Their established use made them ideal for disseminating images of the war after 1914. Like the popular art of the time, European postcards turned patriotic, and print artists were employed in drafting their designs. Artistic postcards were made through a lithographic process and were considered a form of original art, according to historians Aline Ripert and Claude Frère. Their subject matter included allegories of peace and victory, caricatures of the enemy, scenes of battle and illustrations of everyday life on the home-front. Many of the artistic postcards in the Collection were produced in series, such as Poulbot's scenes of wartime childhood and Hansi's German caricatures. A second type of wartime postcard was made possible by photographers who gathered material for publishers, following soldiers and documenting the aftermath of battles. These images were created with a photographic printing process and show the lives of soldiers on the frontlines, post-battle ruins (see Les Ruines de la Grande Guerre) and victory celebrations.

The postcards in the Collection generally carry titles accompanied by text and publisher information, but publication dates and artists (especially in the case of reproductions of existing designs, such as Les Affiches de la Grande Guerre) are rarely marked. Dates printed on cards often pertain to the depicted events, such as battles or official holidays. In some cases, the date of the original drafting is printed beside the signature of the artist.

Most of the Collection's postcards (over 400) were given to the library by the Houston family as part of the estate of Mrs. Eleanor Houston Smith who lived at Druim Moir castle in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia during the war. Several of the cards show signs of being posted, most often from Lieutenant Curtis Allen of the 39th Infantry unit A.E.F., who writes of his travels in post-war France to the Houston family.

See more about the postcards in the Collection.

Back to Print Collection 12: WWI Printed Media and Art