If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 742

 

 

 

 

 

Lectern, inner room of the hall of Old University, Heidelberg, Germany

 

The Old University in Heidelberg, Germany is featured on the front of this card distributed by Edm. V.  König, Heidelberg.  M. Bauder is identified as the photographer in the space at the upper right corner where a stamp would be placed on the reverse side of the card.  At the lower left corner on the reverse is F 137.  The place is named at the upper left corner as “Heidelberg – Alte Universität, Aula.”  There is no date on the card; however, it does have scalloped edges that were popular from the 1940s to the 1960s.  The card is a color picture and is likely to have been distributed closer to the 1960s. 

 

The hall shown on the card is the main assembly hall and lecture theater of the University.  Built over a period of 23 years between 1712 and 1735, the Old University was based on plans by the baroque architect Johann Adam Breunig.  It replaced a four-story college building erected in 1591.  The name “Old University” came into use in the 1930s after another lecture hall was constructed and called New University. 

 

As can be seen on the card, the wall behind the speaker’s platform is the focal point of the room with the arched painting by Ferdinand Keller (1842-1922).  The painting depicts the foundation and history of the University allegorically.  The wooden ceiling has four round paintings by Rudolf Gleichauf (1826-1896) of female figures.  The figures represent Philosophy, Medicine, Jurisprudence and Theology.  The walls list 37 names of famous Heidelberg scholars, divided into two rows.  The entrance area commemorates the Grand Duke of Baden.  A tablet of congratulations from the University of Freiburg dates 1886 hangs above the doorway.

 

Today the Hall of the Old University is used mainly for academic celebrations, and as a venue for concerts, readings, and presentations, especially awards of cultural prizes. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_University,_Heidelberg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Adam_Breunig

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Keller_(painter)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_Gleichauf

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 741

 

 

 

 

 

Palazzo Vecchio, Florence, Italy

 

The Palazzo Vecchio, or Old Place, in Florence, Italy is featured on this pink tinted unused vintage postcard.  While the card does have a blurb at the upper left corner on the reverse it does not identify the photographer or the publisher/printer.  With a magnifying glass it is possible to see horse drawn wagons at the right near the arches and at the left center near the building, making it possible to estimate the date of the picture to the late 1890s or early 1900s.  The card has a divided back narrowing the publication date to after 1902 for the card itself.  The blurb is in English and says:  “The Palazzo Vecchio, Florence, Italy—For many years this magnificent building was the seat of the Florentine government.  The court of the Palace dates back from the 16^th century.  On the right of the picture is the Loggia de artists, in marbles and bronzes.”

 

Before full-color photographs were common or available for reproduction, various methods of tinting or coloring pictures was a popular trend on cards like this one.  Pink or light red seems to be predominant on most early tinted cards.  Sometimes more than one color was used.  This card has a slightly darker reddish tint on the building behind the main structure.  The foreground is a very pale pink in contrast. The top of the tower is partially cut off on the card, hence there is not a complete image of the entire building.

 

The Palazzo Vecchio has had different names at different times over the centuries.  It was called Palazzo della Signoria, Palazzo del Popolo, Palazzo dei Priori and Palazzo Ducale depending upon what entity was using the building.  The people of Florence decided to build a palace here that would be more secure and defensible in times of conflict.  Construction for a new building began in 1299 on the ruins of Palazzo dei Fanti and Palazzo dell’Esecutore di Giustizia that had once been owned by the Uberti family.  The Uberti were said to be rebels and the new fortress palace was built to prevent that family from rebuilding at that location ever again. 

 

A cubical shaped building it is made of solid stonework, with two rows of two-lighted Gothic windows, each with a trefoil arch.  Decorative bas-reliefs by Michelozzo were added in the 15^th century.  Crenellated battlements are supported by small arches and corbels.  There is also a simple tower with a clock. 

 

When Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici moved his official seat from the Medici palazzo to this palace in 1540 he renamed it Palazzo Vecchio or Old Palace.  He also commissioned an above-ground walkway called the Vasari corridor that went from the Palazzo Vecchio through the Uffizi, over the Ponte Vecchio to the Palazzo Pitti.  He also moved the seat of government to the Uffizi.  Today most of the Palazzo Vecchio is now a museum. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palazzo_Vecchio

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 740

 

 

 

 

 

Skyline view of Cologne, Germany, ca 1979

 

This is a used postcard postmarked 1979 and featuring a silhouette view of the Cologne on the Rhine River, Germany.  At the upper left corner on the reverse, it reads:  “Köln Am Rhein. Rheinufer mit Dom, Gr. St. Martin und Rathausturm” [view with Rhine River, Church of Great St. Martin, and the City Hall].  At the bottom left corner on the reverse is:  Fabaufhame: Horst Zeithen [color by Horst Zeithen].  The center line also on the reverse side has the code Z 100, and Gertrud Zeithen with an address as the printer/distributor. 

 

The handwritten message was sent unsigned to the writer’s mother and perhaps a brother.  Part of the message is worth repeating here as it mentions the Cathedral in Köln.  “…The Cathedral in Köhn is one of the finest in all of Europe.  With many works of art and lots of gold.”  The stamp was one from a set issued in 1977 that featured castles and palaces. 

 

 German stamp issued in 1977, one in a set featuring castles and palaces

 

St. Martin’s, also known as Great Saint Martin Church, can be seen on the left side of the card.  The foundations date to about 960 AD and rest on remnants of an earlier Roman chapel.  That chapel was on what was then an island in the river.  A Benedictine monastery was housed there for a time.  Today the buildings, including the tower, form one of the landmarks of Cologne’s Old Town.  It was badly damaged during World War II.  At the time the postcard was sent restoration may have been in progress but the project was not completed until 1985.

 

On the right side of the picture is the Cologne City Hall or Rathaus complex comprised of several buildings.  The city council and the offices of the Lord Mayor are found in the complex.  It is the oldest city hall in Germany with the oldest of the several structures dating back approximately 900 years.  Buildings that were added over the centuries are representative of several different architectural styles from Gothic, Renaissance, to Modern Movement.  The site was home to the former Ancient Roman Ptraetorium that was destroyed by an earthquake in the late 8^th century. 

 

Cologne is the fourth most populous city of Germany with over one million inhabitants in the city proper and over 3 million people in the Cologne Bonn urban region.  The city is home to more than 30 museums and is a major cultural center for the Rheinland area of Germany.  The University of Cologne is one of Europe’s largest and oldest universities. 

 

The Rhine River is seen in the foreground of the photograph.  It is one of the major rivers in Europe and begins in the southeastern Swiss Alps and flows downstream from Lake Constance running eventually down into the Netherlands and emptying into the North Sea.  It is the second longest river in Central Western Europe after the Danube.  It also contains Rhine Falls the most powerful waterfall in Europe.   

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne_City_Hall

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Martin_Church,_Cologne