Where the image of a particular postcard has a catalogue number
( Example
- D09-211042-00 ) the card may be available for purchase. P&P UK on up to 5 standard
postcards 50 pence - Overseas by weight.
Glossary of General Postcard Terms
A/F OR WAF - A term often seen on the reverse of a card, penciled in by
a dealer. It is short for all faults or with all faults and indicates some damage
to the card resulting in a lower than expected price. e.g. a crease, damaged
corner etc.
APPLIQUE - A term used to describe a postcard which has some form of cloth,
metal or other embelishment attached to it.
ART DECO - Artistic style of the 1920s, recognisable by its symmetrical designs
and straight lines.
ART NOUVEAU - Artistic style of the turn of the century, characterised by
flowing lines and flowery symbols, yet often depicting impressionist more than
representational art.
BAS RELIEF - Postcards with a heavily raised surface, giving a papier-mache
appearance.
CHROMO - Early postcards using the finest colour printing methods, some of
the best examples having been developed by many German printers. There were no
picture dots within the image as the colour was applied in solid blocks. The
cards have a deep, rich colour and a glossy surface.
COMPOSITES - A number of individual cards, that when placed together in a
group, form a larger picture.
COURT CARDS - The official size for British postcards between 1894–1899,
measuring 115mm x 89mm.
DIVIDED BACK - Postcards with a back divided into two sections, one for the
message, the other for the address. British cards were first divided in 1902
and American cards in 1907.
EARLY - Postcards from 1894 until 1899. Most cards, known as Court Cards,
measure only 115mm by 89mm. But generally undivided backs up until 1902 can also
fit into this category.
EMBOSSED - Postcards with a raised surface.
GRUSS AUS - Literally 'Greetings From' in German, these cards were highly
pictorial.
HOLD-TO-LIGHT - Also referred to as 'HTL' postcards, often of a night time
scene with cut out areas to show the light.
IFPD - International Federation
of Postcard Dealers
INTERMEDIATE SIZE - Refers to postcards from the period between Court Cards
and Standard Size, measuring 130mm x 80mm.
KALEODOSCOPES - Postcards with a rotating section that reveals a rainbow of
colours when turned.
LARGE LETTER - A term used to describe a postcard which has the name of a
place shown as a series of very large letters, inside of each of which is a picture
of that locale.
MIDGET POSTCARD - Novelty card of the size 90mm x 70mm.
MODERN - From the 1960s postcards were printed in a larger format 150mm by
100mm.
"NOSTALGIA" - A series of reproduction postcards with descriptions
on the reverse.
NOVELTY - Any postcard that is different from the normal. e.g. shaped or one
with pull-out views or postcards which do something, or have articles attached
to them, or are printed in an unusual size or on strange materials - ie leather.
OILETTE - A trade name used by the postcard publisher Raphael Tuck to describe
postcards reproduced from original paintings.
OLD - This is generally taken to be cards printed before the 1960s and of
a standard 140mm by 89mm size.
PIONEER - Between 1893-1898 - During this time only governments were allowed
to use the word "Postcard" on the back of the postcard. Privately published
postcards in this era will usually have the titles "Souvenir Card", "Correspondence
Card", or "Mail Card" on the back.
PHQ - Postal Headquarters cards
PRINTED - A method used to enable mass production of what was originally a
photographic image by splitting the original into dots and transferring it to
a printing plate. The quality of the resulting postcards varies considerably.
PTA - Short for Postcard Traders Association. An organisation for dealers
which promotes postcard collecting.
REAL PHOTOGRAPHIC, RPPC or RP - Images that have been produced by photographic
rather than a printed process. They usually have a glossy finish.
REWARD CARDS - Cards that were given away to school children for good work.
SET or SERIES - A number of cards linked in some way (e.g. by number) by a
particular publisher and found usually in groups of six.
STANDARD SIZE - Introduced in Britain in November 1899, measuring 140mm x
89mm.
SUBJECT - Any card that is not topographical.
TOPOGRAPHICAL or TOPO - Used to describe cards showing general views or street
scenes where the view is more dominant than a particular subject e.g. a vehicle
or person.
UNDIVIDED / DIVIDED BACK - Describes postcards with a plain back where all
of this space was used for the address as before 1902 cards were only allowed
to have an address on the non-picture side but in January of that year the Post
Office agreed to a dividing line to allow for both a message and the address
to appear on the same side although undivided were still in common use up until
1907.
VIGNETTE - Usually found on undivided back cards, consisting of a design which
does not occupy the whole of the picture side. A vignette may be anything from
a small sketch in one corner of the card, to a design cover three quarters of
the card. The purpose is to leave some space for the message to be written, as
the entire reverse of the card could only be used for the address.
WRITE-AWAY - Used to describe a card with the opening line of a sentence,
which the sender would then complete. Often found on some early comic cards.
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