If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 773

  

 

 

 

 

The Rothéneuf Church, Saint Malo, France

 

This unused Vintage postcard with a divided back features a black & white photograph of the Rothéneuf Church, Saint-Malo, France.  At tue upper left on the front of the card can be found the number 4814, the title: “Rothéneuf – L’Englise” or The Rothéneuf Church, and the initials G.F.  At the bottom left corner is:   “Collection Germain – T. Guérin, successeru, St. Malo.”  No additional information is found on the reverse of the card.   

 

Today this would be categorized as an historical card as it shows not only the church but the people dressed in clothing of the era the picture was taken.  Men’s clothing does not change too much but women’s and children’s clothing can help date the picture to the early 1900s or slightly before.  Note:  previous Thursday postcards, numbered 586, 589, 605, 745 and 747, can be found by using the search bar and Saint Malo. 

 

The village of Rothénneuf is located northeast of Saint Malo on the coast.  It is a seaside resort that is most famous for its rock sculptures (see the postcard #605 from 27 April 2023).  The card was found in a shoebox jumble in a local antique mall.

 

Trivia:  The navigator and explorer, Jacques Cartier (1491-1557) who is credited with the discovery of the St. Lawrence River in Canada was born in Rothéneuf.  He also spent his final years there.  His Rothéneuf estate has been turned into a museum.  It is known that he made maps and wrote accounts of his voyages but they no longer exist. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roth%C3%A9neuf

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

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcard, 772

 

 

 

 

 

The Cross at Saint-Servan, Brittany, France ca early 1900s

 

This unused Vintage postcard is numbered 88, and attributed to the postcard/photography studio of Lévy Fils, Paris.  Typical of French postcards of this era the reverse has a slight greenish tint to it.  The back is divided and labeled for Correspondence on the left and Addressee on the right.  Because of the greenish coloration and the divided back the card can be dated to the early 1900s.  The town of Saint-Servan or St. Servan is located in Brittany, western France, about 2 miles from the Saint-Malo ferry port. 

 

The House of the Cross at Saint-Sevan is where Saint Jeanne Jugan performed their charitable works for the Little Sisters of the Poor.  Today Catholic pilgrims can visit this site.   Who was Saint Jeanne Jugan?  She was a French Catholic nun who was born in 1792 and died in 1879.  She is primarily known for dedicating her life to the neediest of the elderly poor.  The daughter of a fisherman she worked as a shepherdess while young and later as a kitchen maid for the Viscountess de la Chou.  The viscountess took Jugan with her when she visited the sick and poor.  Although Jugan had opportunities to marry, she declined proposals and told her mother that God was calling her to a work with elderly sick women.  Her work began in 1839 with service to one blind woman who was also partially paralyzed who had no one to care for her.  Later Jugan rented a room to provide housing for a dozen elderly people.  That beginning morphed into acquiring an unused convent building that could house 40 people. 

 

Eventually Jugan founded the Little Sisters of the Poor.  About this time additional young women joined Jugan in her mission of service.  The sisters would go door-to-door daily asking for food, clothing, and money for the women in their care.  By 1850 over 100 women had joined the congregation.  Sadly, Jugan was forced out of her leadership by Abbott Auguste Le Pailleur, the priest who had been appointed Superior General of the congregation.  He assigned her to do nothing but begging on the street until she was sent into retirement. 

 

The Little Sisters started In France but by 1851 had expanded to England and five communities were in the United States.  By 1879 there were 2,400 Little Sisters across Europe and North America.  Members of the community make vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and hospitality.  They wear traditional habits, either all-white or black with gray veils.

 

Jugan was canonized a saint in 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Sevan

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

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

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 771

 

 

 

 

 

 

Malta, Strada Reale, early 1900s

 

A black & white photograph of the Strada Reale, or main street, in Malta is featured on this unused Vintage postcard.  At the top is the title, and at bottom middle on the front of the card is “Photo The Grand Studio.”  At the bottom right corner on the reverse is:  09 3221.  No other information is available on the reverse.  It is a divided back card. 

 

The photograph featured on the card shows the main street of the Captial city of Valletta, Malta, that extends the whole length of the Capital.  Parts of the street are paved with flint stones.  This street is known variously as Republic Street, Strada Reale, or Kingsway.  Important buildings and squares are found along the route of the street.  These include the City Gate, Freedom Square, the Courts of Justice, the Parliament of Malta, Palazzo Ferreria, Royal Opera House, the Archaeology Museum, St. John’s Square, Spinola Palace, The Malta Chamber of Commerce, the Casino Maltese and others.  The Valletta Local Council together with the Maltese government manages the street.  It is mostly open to pedestrians and has highly limited vehicle use.  Commercial deliveries load and unload in the early morning.  Only electric cabs/taxis are allowed to drive up and down the street.  Even the Malta Police Forces uses Segways to patrol the streets.

 

Malta is an island country located in the Mediterranean Sea between Sicily and North Africa in Southern Europe.  The name Malta comes from Italian and Maltese, and means a place of honey or sweetness.  Some think the Greeks may have given the island the name after the bees that were found on the island centuries ago.  It could also come from the Phoenician word for haven or port. 

 

In 2019 archaeologist Eleanor Scerri discovered the remains of hearths, stone tools, and the bones of a number of different animals at the Latnija Cave that indicated that hunter-gatherers lived on Malta around perhaps as early as 6500 BC.  Archaeological excavations are still being worked on there. 

For additional information, see:

 

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

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_Street,_Valletta

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

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcard, 770

 

 

 

 

 

Congress Hall, Philadephia, PA, 1939

 

This is a used Linen postcard dated October 1939.  The title and number 162 appears at the top margin on the front of the card.  The number 41848 appears at the bottom right corn on the front.  On the reverse of the card a blurb is found at the upper left corner:  “Congress Hall is located at Chestnut and Sixth Str.  The site before the Revolution was occupied by a wooden shelter for visiting Indians.  The present building was completed in 1790 and until 1800 was occupied by the Congress of the Nation.  After 1800 it was devoted to criminal courts which now sit in the City Hall, the old building being empty.”  Made in U.S.A. is printed on the reverse center line. The publisher and/or distributor is not identified.  

 

Philadelphia was the capital of the United States during and immediately after the American Revolutionary War.  During that time the United States grew by three new states, Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee, and ratified the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution.  Both George Washington and John Adams had their inaugurations there.  A restoration of the building to its original appearance of 1796 was completed in the 20^th century.  Congress Hall and Independence Hall are adjacent to one another and today are conjoined.  The National Park Service maintains Congress Hall and operates guided tours of the building throughout the year. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

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