Arts and Artists

ALBERT & SON MUSIC STORE ADVERTISING COVER

This advertising cover “From Albert & Son, Largest Stores in Australia, Head Office 137 & 139 King St. Sydney” is in a pale dull green print, shows a picture of a three level store and on the front of its awning ‘ALBERTS MUSIC STORES SYDNEY’. A total of 2½d NSW stamps are attached and postmarked with 2 copies of SYDNEY/ FE 22/ 11-A-M/ 04/ 10 N.S.W duplex. It is addressed

Read More »

HUGO WERTHEIM’S SEWING MACHINES & HAPSBURG PIANOS

The advertising cover for Wertheim’s Wonderful Sewing Machines, Hapsburg Pianos and Electra Cycles has a pair of the purple 2d South Australia stamp postmarked ADELAIDE/ 5/ MY 26/ 3.30 PM/ 02, and it is addressed to Hobart, Tasmania (Figure 1). The reverse has a reception postmark of HOBART/ A/ MY 29/ 1902/ TASMANIA (Figure 2). Hugo Wertheim was born in the German electorate of Hesse-Kassel on 12 July 1854 and

Read More »

MESSRS MERMOD FRERES, SWITZERLAND from ALLAN & CO., MELBOURNE

The faint yellow advertising cover for Allan & Co., Importers of Pianofortes, American Organs, Band Instruments and Music has a lilac ‘TWO PENCE’ and an orange ‘THREE PENCE’ QV stamps of Victoria cancelled by a MELBOURNE/ 5/ PM/ 22-3-05/ 5 cancel on both stamps and it is addressed to Messrs Mermod Freres, Ste Croix, Switzerland. The reverse was not seen (Figure 1). Not the earliest form of mechanical or automatic

Read More »

THE DIVINE LADY: BARRINGTON’S GREATEST ROMANCE [CANADA]

Advertising covers are very popular with collectors and come in many forms, some as simple as little more than the name and address of an important company or a significant hotel. The most exciting ones are profusely illustrated on the front and reverse and colorful ones can be quite extravagant in their design. Less common ones (at least in my own limited experience) advertise an event in an artistic field

Read More »

SIR JOHN MILLAIS, PRESIDENT of the ROYAL ACADEMY of ARTS, & ‘BUBBLES’

The ‘Post Card For Inland Postage Only’ has a pair of the bantam green ½d Victoria ‘Postage’ stamp canceled with the duplex MAFFRA/ MR 18/ 07/ VICTORIA postmark with the barred numeral ‘477′, is addressed to a school girl in Bendigo (Figure 1). The reverse shows the celebrated but criticized painting of “Bubbles” by Sir John Millais, Bt., P.R.A. ‘After the Original in the possession of Messrs. Pears.’ The controversy

Read More »

W. H. PALING & Co., Ltd., 86 – 88 QUEEN STREET, BRISBANE

Three privately printed advertising postcards and covers sent from Brisbane in the first decade of the 1900’s were lavishly illustrated with musical instruments, proclaiming the virtues of this well known Brisbane musical store. One printed in red showed 3 different string instruments, and proclaimed that “Every description of Musical Instrument may be obtained cheapest and best” from the store; another in blue depicted the Edison Standard Combination Phonograph and stated

Read More »

VIOLIN PRODIGY to PARIAH: GUILA BUSTABO (1916-2002) [U.S.A.]

Advertising covers have a fascination for many cover collectors, in that they are almost invariably not philatelically contrived, they often are things of beauty, and they frequently tell a story. The different types of advertisements are legion and collectors can specialize in a particular type such as adverts for machinery, perfumes, shoes, hotels and maps, to name but a few. The present cover caught my eye but not as a

Read More »

ANZAC CLUB CINDERELLA, NEW YORK & ACTOR NOLA LUXFORD (1895-1994)

This item is regarded as a cinderella, a stamp-like creature with no postal validity.  Such items are not infrequently applied to the front, but more often to the reverse of a posted envelope mostly for its decorative appeal.  There is not a skerrick of postal history interest in a mint copy such as this, but the fact I have never seen a copy before, and that there is a real

Read More »

DAME ELLEN TERRY, “ALL THE RAGE DOWN HERE” MELBOURNE 9 MR 1907

This post card raises at least two questions, the first being: Was Master Walter Jansen of Maryborough, Victoria enamored of receiving a postcard from his sister of a future Shakespearian actress Dame?; and, did Ellen Terry perform on the stage in Melbourne in 1907? I can’t answer for sure in regards to the first question, but at present, after an intensive search of the extensive writings concerning Ellen Terry, I

Read More »

BARONESS SOPHIE ADLERSPARRE, SWEDISH FEMINIST, WRITER & EDITOR

The cover was addressed to Baroness Leijonhoufud (sic), Allerton, The Drive, Hove, England and it was redirected with a ms. Nissafors, Sweden. There is a blue crayon tax marking as well as a tax handstamp of a ‘T’ in a hexagon. The 2 copies of the 1d pink QV stamp of Victoria are canceled with a MELBOURNE/ 10/ 9–A 20 MY 08/ VICTORIA postmark. There is a reception cancel at

Read More »