French postcard
A French postcard is a small, postcard-sized piece of cardstock featuring a photograph of a nude or semi-nude woman; the term is mainly American. Such erotic cards were produced in great volume, primarily in France but also throughout Europe, in the late 19th and early 20th century. The term was adopted in the United States, where such cards were not legally made.[1] The cards were sold as postcards, but the primary purpose was not for sending by mail, as they would have been banned from delivery. The cards sometimes depicted naked lesbians.[2]
French postcards featured both photographic and illustrated nudity, sexual activity, and sexual symbolism. Prominent illustrators of such cards included Xavier Sager and Georges Mouton.[3]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ The Color of Words: An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Ethnic Bias in the United States, Philip Herbst. Intercultural Press, 1997, page 86
- ^ Human Sexuality: An Encyclopedia. Routledge, 2014, p. 48-49
- ^ Lederman, Erika (2 November 2015). "French Postcards: History Revealed". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
Further reading
[edit]- French Postcards: An Album of Vintage Erotica, Martin Stevens. Universe Books/Rizzoli, 2007, ISBN 978-0789315342.
- P. Hammond French undressing: naughty postcards from 1900 to 1920. London: Jupiter, 1976.
- W. Oulette, B. Jones Erotic postcards. New York: Excalibur, 1977.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Postcards of nude women.
| Nakedness and clothing | |
|---|---|
| Nudity and sexuality | |
| Issues in social nudity | |
| Naturism | |
| Nude recreation | |
| By location | |
| Social nudity advocates | |
| Depictions of nudity | |
| See also | |
