This exquisite, hand-tinted real photo postcard features the French performer Manon Loti, posed in a delicate, form-fitting gown adorned with embroidered florals and sheer puffed sleeves. She adjusts her wide-brimmed hat, which is lavishly decorated with large pink roses. With her sculpted hairstyle, porcelain complexion, and elegant stance, she embodies the essence of Belle Époque glamour. Photographed by the celebrated Parisian studio Reutlinger, the card is part of a numbered series and marked 90/83 in the lower left corner. The studio’s name, Reutlinger – Paris, appears in the lower right quadrant of the image, and beneath that is the publisher’s mark: K.F. Éditeurs, Paris, a known postcard publisher that frequently issued hand-colored celebrity cards in collaboration with leading photography studios. The message on the reverse of the postcard reads “My little Léon, I thank you very much for your kind wishes. Do you think there is another girl who would want so much to kiss her little man? Your little woman. Mlle G.” This personal note, possibly flirtatious or romantic in tone, adds a charming touch of period sentimentality to the card. In regard to the photographer, Léopold Reutlinger was one of the most important Parisian photographers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His studio specialized in portraits of actresses, dancers, and singers, many of whom became stars of the Belle Époque. His work was frequently reproduced in elegant photographic postcards like this one. The publisher of this postcard, K.F. Éditeurs (Paris), a well-known postcard publishing firm active in the early 1900s, recognized for producing tinted postcards, particularly featuring Parisian stage performers. They collaborated with top-tier studios such as Reutlinger and Waléry. (SOLD)


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