Deltiology

History

Deltiology appeared at the end of the 19th century, when the mass production of postcards began and received international distribution as the cheapest type of postal items. The first postcard was published in 1869, and by 1875, 231.5 million open letters were sent in the member countries of the Universal Postal Union.

In the late 19th to early 20th centuries, the first organizations of deltiologists appeared. Special magazines and catalogs began to be published (in Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Russia, Great Britain, the United States, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, etc.), international exhibitions took place (in Leipzig, Saint Petersburg, Nice, Paris, Florence, Nuremberg, London, etc.), congresses of collectors and postcard publishers (in Leipzig - 1896, 1910; in Nice - 1899), the first auctions began to be held.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, deltiology has become one of the most popular types of collecting, facilitated by the mass production of postcards of diverse topics (geography, ethnography, history, various types of art, technology, sports, portraits, etc.) and of high-quality art and printings, and by postal exchange between countries which expanded significantly with the strengthening of international relations.

The initial views on deltiology were somewhat different from the ones we have today. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was believed that only a postcard that had been mailed, and thus “fulfilled its function”, could be a worthy collectible. Moreover, many collectors would only be interested in a postcard with a view of a city or locality if it had been mailed from that city or locality. A blank postcard without a postmark was equated to a simple “picture”. Today, however, some collectors actually ignore cards with writing on them.

Deltiology is one of the most popular types of collecting. Postcards are usually valued in proportion to their age and rarity of their subject. Recently, an increased demand for postcards has provoked an increase in prices. For example, the price of certain scarce or historically significant postcards at online auctions can reach $1000, while most postcards would not reach $5.

Identification

There are some general rules to determining when a postcard was printed. Postcards are generally sent within a few years of their printing, so the postmark helps date a postcard. If the card is original and not a reprint, a postcard's original printing date can be deduced from such things as the fashions worn by people in the card, the era in which the cars on the street were made, and other time-sensitive clues. Postcards produced by the Curt Teich Company can be dated more exactly using the company-printed date code on the view side or within the stamp box if visible.

Vintage picture postcards are described as being from the "Golden Age of Postcards," which was generally 1898–1919. Modern 'chromes' are color photographs and thus differ from photochromes generated from black and white photographs before c. 1915. Picture postcards are also differentiated based on other features: undivided backs are typical for c. 1901–1906 in the USA, prior to 1904 in Canada, and other years in other countries. Divided backs followed undivided backs: c. USA 1907, while white border cards are common from c. 1915-1930. The time of the linens was circa 1930–1950, and modern chromes appeared after 1940.

Practice

Postcards are collected by historical societies, libraries and genealogical societies because of their importance in research, such as how a city looked at a particular time in history and social history. Many elementary schools use postcards to teach children geography. Postcard pen pal programs have been established to help children in language arts.

Deltiologists collect for various reasons. Some are attracted to the postcards themselves, then narrow down their interests. Others are interested in something in particular, such as ballet, and decide to collect ballet-related postcards to augment their interest in ballet.

Collectors may find picture postcards at home in boxes, attics, or scrapbooks, generate their own on trips and vacations, and acquire them from stores, flea markets, purchasing on the Internet, or other collectors.

A number of artists have become recognized for the creation of postcards, and certain publishers specialize in the production and printing of picture postcards.

Worldwide popularity

Worldwide, deltiology is the third-largest collecting hobby after stamp collecting and coin/banknote collecting.

Some websites popularize deltiology by providing opportunities to receive and send postcards to random people around the world.

Collection storage

There are three most popular ways to store postcards: index card, in albums and in envelopes. Until the 1990s, collectors mainly used cardboard albums, threading the corners of postcards in the slots. Nowadays, plastic photo albums with pockets are used more often, as a postcard can be inserted in the pockets completely. The album storage method ensures the safety of the collection in the best way, plus it is visually appealing. However, the disadvantages are that as the collection grows it takes up more space, the collection increases in weight (due to the albums), and the overall cost of all the albums needed to house a collection.

With the index card storage method, collections of postcards are located in boxes of the appropriate size. Such boxes can be made by the collector independently from plywood, hardboard and standard shoe boxes. The boundaries of each subsection of the collection are marked with separator cards, which have a format larger than that of the postcard. When it comes to envelopes, a collector can put different postcards in an envelope, dividing them by their themes. The main advantages of these methods compared to albums are compactness, money saving, and time saving (reducing the time spent on inserting and rearranging cards in albums). The main disadvantage is that postcards quickly wear out from constant sorting.

Famous Deltiologists

• David Adler (architect)

• Ronnie Barker

• Joe Berardo

• Jefferson Burdick

• Abdulla Dubin

• William Harwood (photographer)

• Paul Heaton

• Karl Jaeger (educator)

• Leonard Lauder

• John Margolies

• Lauro Moscardini

• Martin Parr

• Ron Scarlett

• Jane Scott (rock critic)

Notes

References

• Thomas M. Fürst (compiler, author), Rainer von Scharpen (translation). Picture Postcards - a Bibliography. Supplemented by a History of Deltiology, Schwalmtal, Germany: Phil*Creativ, 2016, , 59 pp.

References

1. ''Post Card Collectors' Magazine'', Vol. 3, No. 1, January 1945 as reported by Donald Brown, [https://www.lib.umd.edu/institute-american-deltiology Institute of American Deltiology]
2. ''Canadian Quaker History Journal'' [https://cfha.info/journal56.pdf], page 22
3. ''The A B C of Stamp Collecting'' [http://www.globalphilateliclibrary.org/gplstatic/BL_CrawfordDocs/016671523.pdf], page 33
4. as reported by Donald Brown, [https://www.lib.umd.edu/institute-american-deltiology Institute of American Deltiology]
5. ''Postcard Collector's Magazine'': Postcard Enterprises Inc., Palm Bay, Florida, First Issue January 1976, page 15
6. {{usurped
7. Tagrin N.S.. (1962). "In the search for unusual (rus. 'В поисках необычного')". Association for the Promotion of Political and Scientific Knowledge of the RSFSR.
8. Tagrin N.S.. (1978). "The world in a postcard (rus. 'Мир в открытке')". Art.
9. "Geography Postcards".
10. "Art Postcards".
11. "Technology Postcards".
12. "Sport Postcards".
13. М.S. Zabochen, N. S. Tagrin. (1978). "Deltiology". Great Soviet Encyclopedia.
14. N. S. Tagrin. (1978). "The world in a postcard (rus. 'Мир в открытке')". Art.
15. N. S. Tagrin. (1978). "The world in a postcard (rus. 'Мир в открытке')". Art.
16. ''Osinin A.'' Why do we collect postcards, or could postcards to be a good investment// Deltiology. — 2007. — № 1. — P. 49.
17. [http://www.americanpostcardart.com/about-postcards Information about dating postcards] {{webarchive. link. (2006-07-21)
18. "Postcard Collections".
19. "GUIDE TO DATING CURT TEICH POSTCARDS".
20. "The History of the Use of Postcards".
21. "Write Pen Pal Postcards {{!}} Activity {{!}} Education.com".
22. See subsections in Category:Postcards
23. "Postcards on Colnect".
24. "Postcards connecting the world - Postcrossing".
25. N. S. Tagrin. (1978). "The world in a postcard (rus. 'Мир в открытке')". Art.