Vintage Santa Postcards

As someone who loves vintage graphics and the Christmas holiday, I am particularly drawn to the jolly fat man known as Santa Claus. And while he is known in many lands and by many names he is an icon that has withstood the test of time as a hero for children everywhere. So it's no wonder he has been portrayed in vintage illustrations and postcards pretty much since the beginning of publishing.

On this page you'll find an assortment of Vintage Santa Claus Postcards as well as Victorian Santa Postcards and Antique Postcards also sporting good ol' Saint Nicolas. There are also Postcard Reproduction books with Santa Clause.

Postcard collecting is a fun and inexpensive hobby that combines the thrill of the hunt with the charm and beauty of vintage illustrations. You'll also find on this page a section regarding collecting and storing postcards to get you started on this fun hobby.

What You'll Find On This Page

• Vintage, Antique & Victorian Santa Postcards
• Reproduction Vintage Santa Clause Postcards Books
• Who is this Santa character anyway?
• Tips for collecting Vintage Postcards
• Care & Storage of Your Vintage Postcard Collection

All copyrights are retained by the artist, Mona Majorowicz of Wild Faces Gallery.

The artwork or content in this lens may not be used or reproduced, either in part or in whole, without the express written consent from the artist.

The History Behind The Icon

Well you know the basics of Santa Claus. The iconic character is known by many names and in many lands. He goes by Santa, Saint Nicholas, St. Nick, Kris Kringle and Father Christmas. He's a jolly fat man with a snowy beard and dressed in red who generously giving gifts to all. While the finer details vary a bit the main characteristics are the same.

But how did he come into being? Many countries have similar stories of a gift bearing man though the details vary. here's a few origins to the fat man of Christmas.

The Historical Figures Behind Santa Claus According To Wikipedia

The Christian Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas of Myra is the primary inspiration for the Christian figure of Sinterklaas. He was a 4th century Greek Christian bishop of Myra (now Demre) in Lycia, a province of the Byzantine Anatolia, now in Turkey. Nicholas was famous for his generous gifts to the poor

( more ...)

Influence of Germanic paganism and folklore

Numerous parallels have been drawn between Santa Claus and the figure of Odin, a major god amongst the Germanic peoples prior to their Christianization. Since many of these elements are unrelated to Christianity, there are theories regarding the pagan origins of various customs of the holiday ( more ...)

Modern origins

Pre-modern representations of the gift-giver from church history and folklore, notably St Nicholas and Sinterklaas, merged with the British character Father Christmas to create the character known to Britons and Americans as Santa Claus. Father Christmas dates back at least as far as the 17th century in Britain, ( more ...)

The History Of Santa Claus

Historically children set out cookies and milk for Santa and in return they get presents under the Christmas Tree.

Santa or Santa Claus

* Jolly Fat Man

* Dressed In Red with white cuffs

* Brings gifts for children via the chimney

* White Beard

* Has flying reindeer

* Lives at the north Pole

* Has elf helpers

The History Of Santa Claus

Saint Nicholas of Myra is the primary inspiration for the Christian figure of Sinterklaas.

Sinterklaas Is the early Christian forerunner of Santa Claus and is primarily depicted in a bishops garb with a staff and long white beard. Tradition holds that children put carrots and sugar in their boots by the chimney as treats for Sinterklaas's white horse and in return Sinterklaas gives them candy and gifts.

Sinterklaas or St. Nicolas

* Gives Gifts To Children

* Dressed As A Bishop

* Carries a staff

* Long White Beard

* Rides Rooftops On A White Horse

* Has mischievous black faced helpers

The History Of Santa Claus

As with so many other forerunners of Santa Clause Father Christmas was a unique character though over time has merged with the Santa Claus persona and now are generally considered one and the same.

A Good representation of Father Christmas is the third ghost in Dicken's A Christmas Carol.

Father Christmas

* Historically wears a bright green suit.

* A Man Of Good Cheer

* Historically does not bring gifts

* Resides In the mountains of FInland

*Sometimes mulled wine, Sherry or minced pies are set out for Father Christmas

Some Postcard Collecting Tips To Get You Started

Research Your Area Of Interest If you plan on becoming a serious collector it is important that you do a little research before just jumping it. Reading a book or two on the subject of determining a postcard's value through condition and scarcity of image will help you find the diamond amongst the rhinestones.

Factors In Valuing A Vintage Postcard

• Brightness and color of the graphics
• Condition - tears, stains, smears or folds.
• The thickness and quality of the paper
• Look at the fine print for a publishing date
• Focusing On Collecting What You Love The key to beginning any collection is to figure out exactly what you most love. By narrowing your collecting focus just a bit you will not be overwhelmed but also you'll create a cohesive collection.

Where To Look For Vintage Postcards

• On this page (yes, I couldn't resist.)
• Estate Sales
• Garage Sales
• Ebay
• Flea Markets
• Antique Stores
• Baseball card shows or coin and stamp shows

Arhival and Acid Free Storage & Display For Your Postcard Collection

Maintaining Your Postcard Collection's Value

As with all things fragile and valuable correct storage of your collection is paramount for preserving both the value and the appearance of your vintage postcards. Be sure to mount them or store them with only acid free materials touching the postcards.

Tips For Storing Your Vintage Postcard Collection

* Remove Vintage Postcards From Old Albums Or Mountings Promptly Carefully remove your newly acquired postcards as non-archival materials will cause damage and thus value-loss through transference of acids. Older albums are generally not archival and most likely the postcard was glued into place.

* Use Only Archival Products such as boxes, albums and pages for mounting or storing your postcard collection. Happily these kinds of items are easy to find and cheap to buy.

* Use Adequately Sized Album Pages Too tight a fit may mean you damage your postcard. Most postcards are about the size of a 4x6 photograph, however many vintage postcards are slightly off from this.

* Only Use Archival Mounting Corners Never use glue or tape for mounting postcards

* If Framing Use Only Archival Materials.

Mona Majorowicz Of Wild Faces Gallery

My name is Mona Majorowicz I am a professional artist who has been making my living selling my work for some time now. I am an animal artist, (meaning I paint critters) who works primarily in Oil Pastel or Water Soluble Pencil.

I own and operate Wild Faces Gallery with my husband Mike in a small rural town in Iowa. There we sell my original artwork and prints, as well as do quality custom framing and offer Giclee printing for other artists as well as for ourselves. I have over 20 years in ate art and framing industry both as a business owner and as a working artist.

I maintain a blog called Fur In The Paint, as well as write a regular column for the equestrian magazine Apples 'N Oats about painting horses.

Animals are my passion and art is how I chose to express it.