Animal-themed greeting postcards were extremely popular during the Edwardian era, especially designs featuring cats, which were often associated with luck, comfort, and domestic life. This unusual New Year postcard features several long-haired cats surrounded by drifting smoke rings alongside the festive greeting:
“With Hearty New Year Greetings”
alongside the line:
“There’s gladness in remembrance”
The cats appear within drifting rings of smoke rising from a cigarette at the bottom of the design, beside a small match holder decorated with holly leaves and berries. Designs like this reflect the decorative and imaginative style often seen on early twentieth century greetings postcards.
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The dark background and monochrome-style artwork give the postcard a distinctive appearance compared with many brightly coloured greeting cards of the same period.
The reverse shows the postcard was published by Davidson Bros., London & New York, under their “Real Photographic Series”. Davidson Bros. produced a wide variety of greetings postcards, including animal studies, festive designs, romance cards, and photographic scenes.
Posted in Southampton in December 1908, the card includes a halfpenny stamp and a handwritten seasonal message sent to Miss Dora Stephens at Clovelly Road, Southampton.
The handwritten message appears to read:
“Love and wishes for a bright and happy New Year, Love from Ellie.”
Cat postcards from the Edwardian period remain especially popular with collectors today, particularly festive examples combining decorative typography, symbolism, and animal imagery. Cards like this also reflect the popularity of sending New Year greetings through the post during a period when postcards were one of the main forms of everyday communication.
This postcard sold quickly, possibly due to its unusual combination of cats, cigarette smoke imagery, and New Year symbolism.
