This vintage real photo postcard features a portrait of an allied prisoner of war imprisoned at a German POW camp. The soldier in this photograph was being held at Stalag 1-A. The camp was located near the village of Stablack in East Prussia. Stalag 1-A was the furthest east German POW camp. The camp was built in 1939 by Polish prisoners of war. In 1940, Belgian and French prisoners were added to the camp and in 1941, the camp began to incarcerate Russian POWs. There were also British and Italian prisoners in the camp. It is important to note that tens of thousands of Stalag prisoners were sent to “kommandos” (subcamps) spread throughout East Prussia. In January of 1945, with Russian troops approaching, the camp was abandoned and all of the prisoners were evacuated to the west. Note the photograph below which shows the entrance to Stalag 1-A. The prisoner seen in this photograph is wearing a military jacket, stripped of all insignias. I am unable to determine his rank, branch of service, or the identity of the nation he fought for. Note the prisoner’s pants. They are too long and too baggy Despite the ill-fitting uniform, he appears relatively healthy. He is holding a cigarette, which may represent “good treatment” by their German captors. One wonders why this photograph was permitted to be taken. Photographs, such as this one, were allowed because they served as a tool for positive public relations. A relatively content and healthy looking prisoner “advertised” that the Germans treated allied POWs well. Note the ink stamp on the reverse of the card. It identifies the camp as Stalag 1-A and that the card was “Gepruft” (checked or censored). This photo postcard is from sometime between 1940 and 1945. SOLD
This vintage theater postcard features two actresses appearing in the play, “Resurrection”, by Henry Bataille. The play was adapted from a novel written by Leo Tolstoy. The novel was originally published in 1899. The play was performed at the “Theatre National de L’odeon. The actresses are Mll Sylvie (1883-1970) and Mme Bertha Bady (1872-1921). Here are brief biographical skethches of the actresses. Sylvie was born in Paris, France. Her original name was Louise Pauline Mainguene. Her father was a sailor and her mother was a teacher. She started her professional career in 1903. She appeared in a number of French silent films. She was both a stage and a screen actress. She graduated from the Paris Conservatoire. Her filmography, listed by IMDb, credits her as acting in 54 films between 1912 and 1968. Berthe Bady was born in Belgium but her nationality was French. Berthe Bady attended the Brussels Conservatory and was active on the stage between 1893 and 1913. She was a beautiful actress. Berthe was a companion to both Lugne-Poe and Felix-Henri Bataille. Lugne-Poe was a French actor, theatrical director, and scenic designer. He and Bady were involved in symbolist movement of the arts. Bataille was a French dramatist and poet. A brief explanation of symbolism seems to be merited. In theatre, symbolism is a way to bring a greater meaning to something than is apparent at face value. The use of color, characters, movement, props and costumes are all methods of presenting symbolism. In 1897 Bady was the subject of a portrait by Toulouse Lautrec and her death was the subject of a poem by a leading French poet, Louis Aragon. In addition, playwright Fernand Crommelynck dedicated a play to her. Wikipedia credits her with sixteen “notable” play appearances between 1893 and 1913. She appeared in Ibsen’s “The Master Builder” on an international tour. The tour took her to London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Milan, and additional cities. In 1918 she appeared in her one and only film, “Ecce Homo”. The photo of Berthe and Sylvie was taken by Emile Allevy, a Paris photographer. The postcard was published by A.J.C. (Arthur John Carter) of Eastbourne, England. This postcard was likely published around 1902 since that is when Bady played in the play at the Theatre National de L’odeon. This vintage postcard is in good condition (see scans).
This vintage real photo postcard features three adorable little girls dressed in lacy colorful dresses and wearing flowers in their hair. The postcard was published by ABN and dates back to circa 1909. The postcard has a French stamp and a postmark from Ardeche, a department in southeast, France. The postcard in in very good condition (see scans).
This vintage real photo postcard features a well dressed father and presumably, his daughter. The child rests her hand on the shoulder of her father. Judging by her expression, physical contact with her father appears to have given her a sense of security and confidence. The young girl’s hat may indicate her nationality or ethnicity. The only clue that I have about that matter is that the card was purchased from a collector in Greece. This postcard is in very good condition (see scans).
This vintage postcard features a well armed soldier ready for battle. He is wearing an ammunition belt and at least a couple of hand grenades. He also has a rifle although only the barrel of the gun is visible. What nation is this warrior fighting for? Who is he fighting against? I wish I had answers. An inscription on the reverse of the photo indicates that the soldier is the Commandant (Commander) of his unit. The year that this photo was taken, according to the inscription is 1942. I believe, though not very confidently, that the language on the reverse of the photo is Greek. Perhaps this is a Greek or Turkish officer. This photograph was trimmed from a postcard. It measures about 2″ x 3″ and is in very good condition.
A young farmer is captured in this vintage snapshot photograph riding on his Zetor 25 diesel tractor. He looks proud atop his farm vehicle and happy to be out in the fields. Although most of us have never heard of the Zetor brand, the company is one of the best known tractor manufacturers in Europe. There are nearly one and a half million Zetor tractors in use today in over ninety nations scattered around the world. The vehicles are manufactured by the company in Brno, Czech Republic. The company was founded in 1946. It’s first model was named Zetor 25, and this photograph features one of those models. The Zetor 25 was produced until 1961. This photograph measures about 2 1/4″ x 3 1/4″ and is in good condition (see scans). Note the small ink spots slightly above the bottom left corner.
This vintage real photo postcard features two adorable sisters wearing fancy winter clothing. These kids are an illustration of what it means to be “bundled up”. Note the children’s boots and hats. The youngest child is wearing a scarf that gives the appearance of a big ribbon. The ribbon makes her look like a wrapped Christmas gift. This postcard has an Artura stamp box which indicates that the card was published sometime between 1908 and 1924. (SOLD)
This vintage real photo postcard features actress Marjory Day (1887-1940). She was born in New Zealand. She was an actress and was known for “The Woman Who Was Nothing” (1917), “The Life of Lord Byron” (1922), and “The Fighting Marine” (1926). Miss Day was married and divorced from producer/actor George Desmond (1881-1969). The National Portrait Gallery has 15 portraits of Miss Day in their collection. This postcard captures Day exhibiting socially inappropriate behavior. Day’s deviant behavior is the fact that she is smoking a cigarette. She also seems to be wearing pants which is also a violation that could get her in trouble with the fashion police. To top things off, she is rebelliously staring at the photographer as this photo was taken. At first, I thought that Marjory Day was one of those “bad girls” of the theatre (there were also “bad boys”). However, I later learned that this photograph was taken while Day was in costume for playwright George Bernard Shaw’s “Devil’s Disciple” (1897). This postcard was published by Rafael Tuck as part of the “Celebrities of the Stage” series (no. T 790). 
THE CABINET CARD GALLERY 