WWI silk postcard sent to Glayds from Daddy

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c. 1916

Overview

Embroidered silk postcard in the form of an envelope. The flap of the fabric envelope is bordered with dark green thread and features the words 'To my Baby' sewn in the same green thread.. Above this is a depiction of the radiating rays of the sun, with sprays of light and dark pink flowers and green leaves either side.
The base of the silk insert has another long spray of pink flowers and green leaves.
Inside the lifted flap is a small, rectangular, cream coloured greeting card featuring on the left side a posy of pansies in front of a coastal scene and a bird in flight. On the right hand side are the words 'To my Dear Child' printed in blue, and a greeting from Daddy in pencil. The reverse of the card insert has another message from Daddy to Glayds written in pencil..
The surrounds of the postcard are made from embossed cream card with a series of parallel lines for decoration.
The reverse of the postcard has a green coloured line separating the areas for writing and address, and lines for the address to be written on. At the top is the word post card written in French, English and another European language.The maker's mark appears on the lower left, also printed in green ink.

Historical information

According to the Australian War Memorial, woven silk postcards were first produced in Krefeld, Germany in 1898 as a combination of printed postcards and large woven silk pictures, known as Stevengraphs. The early cards were woven on machines. Being machine made, the woven cards always maintained a high standard.
Embroidered silk postcards were first made in 1900 for the Paris Exposition. The popularity of silk postcards peaked during World War One. A thriving cottage industry began around 1915 and the quality of the early silks was quite high. However later, to satisfy demand, the workmanship was often not quite as high.
Postcard companies began to employ women to produce silks on a rough assembly line basis. The cards were generally hand embroidered on strips of silk mesh with as many as 25 on a strip. They were mostly embroidered by French women in their homes and then sent to the factories for cutting and mounting on postcards.
Some postcards were made with little envelopes which could contain a smaller card with a sentimental message.
Production continued steadily through World War One, declining substantially in 1919, until ending around 1923. An estimated 10,000,000 hand made cards were produced from 1915 to 1919.

There are a large number of silk postcards in the collection, including several groupings relating to individual soldiers and their families. This card is an example of that, having been sent to one of two young daughters of a soldier who wrote regularly to his wife and both daughters.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00677

Item type

Themes