Summary
Colour postcard of the Exhibition Building, showing the southern facade and lake at night, circa 1905. The postcard, which was sent to Master L Bennett of Prahran, was printed as part of the Valentine's Series by Valentine & Sons Ltd.
The Exhibition Building was built for the 1880 Melbourne International Exhibition, which opened to visitors on 1 October 1880. By the early 20th century, picture postcards of the Exhibition Building were a popular Melbourne souvenir.
The division of the reverse of the postcard, allowing a message to be written on one half and the address on the other, was not permitted in Australia until 1905.
Physical Description
A colour tinted photograph of the Exhibition Building at night, showing the southern facade with the lake in the foreground. The interior of the building is illuminated and the moon is reflected in the lake. The reverse of the card contains a handwritten inscription in black ink. There is no date or postmark.
More Information
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Collection Names
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Transfer from Trustees of the Royal Exhibition Building (REB), 1996
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Publisher
Valentine & Sons Ltd., England, Great Britain, circa 1905
The division of the reverse of the postcard, allowing a message to be written on one half and the address on the other, was not permitted in Britain until 1902 and Australia until 1905. -
Place & Date Depicted
Royal Exhibition Building (REB), Melbourne, Greater Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, circa 1905
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Addressed To
Master L Bennett, Prahran, Greater Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, circa 1905
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Place Used
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Inscriptions
Obverse, text: Exhibition Buildings, Melbourne. Reverse, text: POST CARD; PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN; For INLAND Postage only this/ space may be used for communication; The Address only to be written/ here; Valentine's Series. Reverse, handwritten: Dear Len/ It is about time/ that I let you know I/ received your P.Card/ which was very pretty./ I went to the Cathedral/ this afternoon to/ the memorial Service for/ the King of Denmark./ I hope you have not/ got this PC in your collection. Daph; Master L. Bennett/St. Leonards./103 Lewisham Rd./Prahran
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Classification
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Category
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Discipline
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Type of item
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Overall Dimensions
140 mm (Width), 90 mm (Height)
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References
For info re Valentine & Sons see: Cook, D 'Picture Postcards in Australia 1898-1920', 1985, p153-154.
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Keywords
Buildings, Civic Mementoes, Correspondence, Exterior Views, Postcards, Royal Exhibition Building, Souvenirs
