Post Card
In the Indian subcontinent, the first postcard had been issued on July 1, 1879. At the time, it only cost 1/4th of an anna to send one anywhere in British India, and 11/2 Anna for sending to a country affiliated to the Universal Postal Union. By 1883, 26 million postcards had been sold!
There are 306 billion emails that are sent out each day. Yet somehow, the warmth, intimacy and anticipation that a handwritten letter or postcard brings with it, is irreplaceable. For this edition we explore how ‘Postcards’, one of the most loved 19th century trends, came to be such a hit in India.
More information
Visible by: Everyone
All rights reserved
-
Taken on Thursday February 6, 2025
-
Posted on Thursday February 6, 2025
- 11 visits
Loading
2 comments
Dinesh said:
n 1865, when a German postal official, Dr. Heinrich von Stephan suggested the idea of introducing postcards (or the postblatt), a debate ensued around privacy concerns. But in 1869, Dr. Emanuel Herrmann (a professor of Economics from Vienna) wrote an article in the Neue Freie Presse favouring the postcard, and the need for a cost-effective medium for “short” messages. He argued, that it would be cheaper for those who did not want to make the effort of writing a lengthy letter. The Austria-Hungary Post approved of his suggestions and on October 1, 1869, the first postcard or “Correspondenz-Karte” was launched.
Dinesh said: