World War I Souvenir Cards -
Embroidered Tokens of Affection
by Patricia Cummings
with photo contributions, as noted
A wise man once said that the trek to China begins with the first step. I am here to tell you that every collection begins with the first item acquired.
My interest in the World War I collectible, embroidered postcards, some marked "Souvenir of France," began with the purchase of a single card that intrigued me. The all-silk card, created on see-through fabric (silk or organza), has a tiny, removable bouquet of flowers tucked inside and the stitched words, "Flowers from France."
Souvenir of France, WW1, collection of Patricia Cummings
The delicate needlework with its simulated look of an envelope with a flap that actually opens grace the front of a specially-made postcard into which it was inserted. The back of the card contains the following message written to Ruth McKnight, 519 E. Oak St., Columbus, Kansas:
"From a soldier boy under the stars & stripes - wishing you a Merry Xmas and a happy New Years. Rusty"
Thousands of Cards Made in Europe
In the meantime, I have learned that these types of cards, that I once thought so rare, were produced by the thousands in France, England, Spain, and Switzerland, and were sold to Allied Forces in Europe, particularly during the 1914-1918 period.
Currently, there is an eBay seller who has been selling some of these cards. He has agreed to let me show you some examples.
photo courtesy of Sphakianos, an eBay seller located in Greece.
This card features a basket of flowers, the flags of the USA, France, and the United Kingdom. As you can see, this card was printed specifically to be sent to "my dear wife." This card has interior pages as seen below:
Far from you ..
but thinking
... of you
I send a card to wish you joy
Good health, wealth and success
And any other thing that may
Lead to your happiness.
Notice the lovebirds, the flower, and the fancy scrollwork on this interior part of the card, made in France.
photo courtesy of Sphakianos
This lovely card has symbols that still resonated from Victorian times: the Japanese style crackled background as in "crazed" chinaware, the horseshoe design for good luck, and the ship to wish "good sailing." Even the deep red color ribbon could be taken as a symbol of love, intensity, and passion - perhaps a fervent desire that all will be well and that this soldier will return home to his loved one. This card also opens and contains a message.
photo courtesy of Sphakianos
The lovely design on this card includes the Spanish words that mean "Much happiness." Notice the fancy edges and the embroiderer's creative use of color and choice of two different flowers: a pansy and a rose. The color green is in a shade that looks quite Victorian, too. Remember that World War I was not that far removed, time-wise from the height of Victorian times.
This card sold by Sphakianos has an embroidered message in Greek. Sent by Auntie Eyssartier, it says "To my dearest Martha, with all my love & best wishes for happy Easter - April 1920."
Both textiles and ephemera can tell us a lot about the times in which they were used and I suppose that is my fascination with them. These cards also prove that when it comes to needlework, work done today is not as original as it might first appear. "There is nothing new under the sun."
~~~~~
We are very grateful for the use of Sphakianos' photos so that we could provide more examples of textiles of this kind. Be sure to visit his eBay store:
http://stores.ebay.com/ANOPOLIS-SPHAKIA
ADDITIONAL RESOURCE: To read a lovely article by Deborah Dwyer titled "Patriotism and Best Wishes from World War I," see the November/December 1998 issue of Piecework magazine, pages 12-18.
Copyright 2008. Patricia Cummings, Quilter's Muse Publications, Concord, NH. All rights reserved. Write to: pat@quiltersmuse.com