Post Card Views of Edinburgh

List of Photographers/Publishers

Post Card Views of

Edinburgh

Yellow background denotes an Edinburgh photographer or publisher.

Green background denotes photographer or publisher from elsewhere.

- V and S Ltd, D = Valentine & Sons, Dundee

See Valentine (below)

- Valentine's Dundee

COPYRIGHT

Valentines of Dundee now own the copyright on postcards published by:

- Valentine & Sons Ltd

- Davidsons (Ideal and Silvertone series)

Valentines of Dundee is a limited company still in existence, albeit non-trading. Valentines of Dundee is now owned by Hallmark.

ST ANDREWS' LIBRARY COLLECTION

Dating Valentine Postcards

St Andrews University Library acquired an extensive archive of Valentine monochrome (black + white and sepia) postcards in 1971 - after the company -together with company records relating to these cards.

After researching this archive, St Andrew's University Library publishe what I have found to be a very helpful little booklet in 1999, titled 'University of St Andrews Valentine Collection.

This booklet gives a brief overview of the history of Valentines of Dundee, and includes lists of the 'JV' numbers that appeared on the front of most of the company's photos and monochrome postcards, showing the dates that the photos would have been originally taken.

Peter Stubbs, Edinburgh: December 20, 2014

Valentines produced many thousand different postcard views between 1896 and the 1960s, including a large number of views of Edinburgh - many of Princes Street, Edinburgh Castle and Portobello; fewer of the Old Town or of other districts.

They issued their last colour postcard in 1970 [Picture Postcard Monthly, Oct 1994, p.48]

Some of the postcards were in series, others were produced in different styles but not in named series. In some cases the same image was re-used through several series of cards in different decades.

In the table below, I have estimated the dates when various cards are likely to have been published:

Valentine's Postcards Published in Series
Series	Published
Aerial	1940s
Art Colour (without border)	1920s
Art Colour (without border)	1940s-1950s
Art Colour (with tartan border)	1940s
Bromotype	1920s
Bromotone	1920s
Carbo Colour	1930s
Carbotone	1920s
Carbotype	1930s
Colourtone	1910s
Etching	1920s
Mail Novelty	1950s
Moonlight	1900s
Phototype	1940s-1950s
Photo-Brown	1920s-1930s
Picturesque Edinburgh	1900s
Selectype	1910s
Serrated edges	1950s
Sepiatype	1940s-1950s
Silveresque	1930s
Silversheen	?
Souvenir	1900s
Valchrome	1950s
Valesque	1920s
Valesque	1950s
Velvette Gravure	1940s-1950s
XL	1900s-1910s

Valentine's Postcards Published for Others
Published for ...	Published
Anderson	1920s
HM Office of Works	1910s
J R Russell	1900s

Valentine's Postcards

NOT Published in Series

Description

Published

Early - Undivided backs

1890s-1902

Reproduced from an etching

1920s

BRITISH MANUFACTURE

1910s

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN

1900s-1910s

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN

1920s

ADDRESS ONLY TO BE WRITTEN HERE

1902-1905

ADDRESS TO BE WRITTEN ON THIS SIDE

1902-1910

Valentine Series

Post Card

1900s

1930s

'2 half-globes' logo + curved writing

1900s

'2 half-globes' logo+ straight writing

1930s

'2 half-globes + V' logo - NO address

1930s

'2 half-globes + V' logo - Dundee + London

1940s-1950s

Published - New York

1900s

Valentine's Postcards

Company History Dates of Negatives Thumbnails

Published 1896-1919 Published 1920-1939 Published 1940-1960s

Valentine's Overseas Postcards

Richard Torrance, who has been collecting and studying Valentine postcards has a couple of questions about the numbering of some of the company's overseas postcards.

Richard writes:

Numbering

"Image numbers have been allocated to Valentine & Son postcards in the range:

- 100,000 to 199,999: Canada

- 200,000 to 299,999: USA **

- 300,000 to 399,999: Australia

- 500,000 to 599,999: South Africa"

** Following the US McKinlay trade protection act, which hit the sale of Valentine cards in the US, some of the 200,000 to 299,999 range was used for British cards

Questions

"Does anybody know what country the range 400,000 to 499,999 was allocated to, and whether or not any of the numbers 600,000+ have been allocated to anywhere?

D Richard Torrance, Edinburgh: May 7, 2012

Reply to Richard?

If you believe that you can help to answer Richard's questions, please email me, then I'll pass on your comments to him. Thank you.

Peter Stubbs, Edinburgh: May 7, 2012

- Voisey, Charles London

Colour tinted post cards. Also metallic-coloured cards

- Arthur's Seat

- Castle Rock and Ross Fountain

- Edinburgh, Craigmillar Castle

- Princes Street East End

- Princes Street West End

Posted 1904