|
Allegorical Imagery in Lincoln Centennial Postcards
|
Collecting postcards became just as popular as sending them, and the colorful mementos were produced for every occasion, holiday, local and national event. It was only natural that major postcard manufacturers would print a line commemorating Lincoln’s birth for the 1909 centennial. Because Lincoln’s significance to the country was mostly related to his presidency during the Civil War, the majority of the cards paid homage to events from that period. A typical example (figure 2, right) depicts his visit to Richmond Virginia after the fall of the Confederate capital. Although the caption quotes the famous line from his second inaugural address, “With malice toward none, with charity for all,” the actual image gives a much more martial view. The president is shown flanked by a squad of stern soldiers, marching down a ruined street, with battle-damaged homes and smoke-filled skies in the background. Above the view is an eagle, national symbol of the federal republic, framed in a laurel wreath with red, white and blue festoons. |
|
Afrolumens Project Home | Slavery | Underground Railroad | 19th Century | 20th Century
Original
material on this page copyright 2003-2005 Afrolumens Project
The url of this page is http://www.afrolumens.com/rising_free/lincolnpc2.html
Contact the editor
This page was updated September 8, 2005.