500 pp. - colour ill. - softbound - printed 2022 - numbered edition of 500 copies
VALUATIONS IN EURO AND RARITY SCALE
Italian text

CATALOGUE - ITALIAN ILLUSTRATED STATIONARY POSTCARD
The forerunners from 1868 to 1898

The catalogue collects more than 1,100 examples of postcards produced or travelled in the period 1868-1898, reproduced full size, many of them front and back. They are illustrated stationery postcards, which bear from a simple decoration or frame to more lithographic or photographic images, or even hand paintings or drawings in the absence of printed postcards.

The first copies, introduced before the birth of the official "postal stationery" postcard issued by the State, were private editions from commercial activities that used this means of communication at a reduced rate to send commercial news.
Among the economic activities, accommodation facilities (hotels, lodges and restaurants) stood out; they covered the entire national territory and, in addition to their activity, indirectly advertised the tourist resorts. The landscape postcard, also known as "Gruss", was developed above all in tourist resorts, as a souvenir to be sent by post.
The forerunners also include greeting cards, used for year-end greetings or for special events.

The official postal card with overprinted stamp, known as "postal stationery", was introduced for the first time in the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1869; in Italy in 1874.
In 1885 the Empire allowed the private postal card the reduced rate, until then only allowed for the "postal stationery" official postcard.
With a decree dated 20 June 1889, Italy also authorized the use of private postcards at a reduced rate, which however had to be of the same size as the official ones, 110x70 mm.
In 1893 the size of the state postcard became 140x90 mm, so private postcards also adapted to the new dimensions.

Commercial postcards benefited from a reduced rate of 2 cents and had no size constraints; however, they had to contain only commercial news. They had a great development due to their simplicity, comfort and economy.