WWI silk postcard sent to Irene Glayds from Daddy June 21 1916

1916
Overview

Embroidered silk postcard in vertical orientation sent to Irene Glayds from Daddy June 21 1916. The silk insert has the words 'Hope and Love' sewn in gold thread in an arc across the bottom, with a small bouquet of pink flowers and buds and green leaves tied together with a pale blue ribbon above. One loose leaflet is positioned in the lower right corner.
The surrounds are made from embossed cream card with a series of good luck motifs including horsehoes and four leaf clovers for decoration.
The reverse has a central line and the words 'Fabrication Francaise' printed in black ink. The message from Daddy to Glayds is written in purple pencil.

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

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-119-RoW00652
Inscriptions and markings

On front of postcard:

"Love and Hope"

On reverse of postcard:

"Dear Gladys June 21/1916
Dear little Sweetheart fond
and true and little Post Card
I am sending to you trusting
to find you well. Well Dear
little girl i have not had a P.C.
from you for a long time. Aunt
Ivy was telling me that you and
Grandfather are great mates.
I am so pleased that you go
round to see him often. You must
tell him not to worry you. Daddy
will be allwright [sic]. I have not seen
your Uncle Walter yet but he will
be allwright [sic]. He is a good Uncle
and he he will be over here
with me before long my cold is
getting better so you need not
worry about Dad i will conclude
with fondest love and kisses XXXXXX
from Daddy to his Dear little
Daughter Irene Glayds Heeps [sic]
of love XXXXXX"

Place made
France
Year
Primary significance criteria
Artistic or aesthetic significance
Historic significance
Social or spiritual significance
Comparative significance criteria
Interpretive capacity
Last modified
Thursday, 14 August, 2025
Completeness
100
Related Objects

Related Objects

Recollections of War

Recollections of War

WWI silk postcard sent to Irene Glayds from Daddy June 21 1916
WWI silk postcard sent to Irene Glayds from Daddy June 21 1916
Reverse of WWI silk postcard sent to Irene Glayds from Daddy June 21 1916
Reverse of WWI silk postcard sent to Irene Glayds from Daddy June 21 1916

Scan this QR code to open this page on your phone ->