Transvaal Souvenir Postcard

Why send one picture postcard when you could send a booklet of pictures


Jeff Woolgar




transvaal souvenir


transvaal souvenir pages 10 and 11


transvaal souvenir illustrating the glue-free tuck-in tab with remains of sealing wax.


The above was an alternative to posting a single postcard to a love one in Europe; for instead of one view here there were twelve views of southern Africa. The cost of postage from Boxburg in the Transvaal to England, 10th December 1908 was one penny and a half penny. Perhaps the printed paper rate as there is no message. The two Transvaal Edward VII single colour adhesive stamps; one-penny scarlet and half-penny yellow green were printed on multiple crown and C.A. watermark paper by De La Rue. These two stamps have been inverted on the cover. Affixing postage stamps thus � with the image of the monarch upside down was, and perhaps still is thought to be a slur on the King. Tongue-in-cheek, William Hanson refers to this as postal regicide.
Overall the production cost for producing this was mean. At first glance the cover board appears to be a good quality cloth-centred-board. Instead, the board is one containing mechanical pulp of inferiority quality, which has been printed to imitate a strong, cloth centred board. Moreover, the 12 page illustrated inset is again printed on a poor quality paper attached with what is now a single rusty stitch.
The glue-free tuck-in tab with remains of the sealing wax is illustrated above.
Reference
Hanson, W., (2024) Just Good Manners, London.




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