Pentecost is one of the most important Christian holidays, and it’s connected to numerous traditions. While sending greeting cards for Pentecost never caught the popularity of Christmas cards or Easter greetings, people in certain areas of Europe used to send good wishes to their friends and relatives, especially in the so-called Golden Era of postcards.
Pentecost, as the name suggests, comes fifty days after Easter. Because Easter is a movable holiday, Pentecost may fall in May or June, or even in May and June, thanks to the differences between Catholic and Orthodox calendars. This means that spring is already in full swing, nature is bursting with life, and optimism is everywhere. The most popular motifs on Pentecost postcards are children, young women, and greenery, all strongly connected with growth and fruitfulness. We collected a dozen typical cards designed for Pentecost. Let’s enjoy them in alphabetical order of their designers.
Bruno Dietze (1867-1912)
Bruno Dietze was a German painter who mostly painted in oils. Landscapes, still life, and portraits of youngsters were his favorite subjects. Idyllic scenery from his paintings was perfect for postcard motifs.
Karl Feiertag (1874-1944)
This Austrian painter from Vienna created portraits, landscapes, and cityscapes. Together with a few other artists, he regularly traveled to the Netherlands about once a year for over a decade to find inspiration in local markets and traditional costumes. He also worked for newspapers, magazines, and various advertising agencies in Vienna and Munich.
Mary Golay (1869-1944)
She was born Mary Speich Galay but signed as Mary Golay. We may find her work also under Mary Galais. This British painter was a typical representative of the Art Nouveau style, with a focus on the female figure; however, we succeeded in finding a rare Pentecost card featuring a landscape motif.
Karl Friedrich Gsur (1871-1939)
Karl Friedrich Gsur was another landscape and portrait painter from Vienna, Austria, who frequently traveled. France, the Netherlands, and Tunisia were the countries he visited for his study trips. He was a well-known and respected war artist. Apart from genre paintings, he also portrayed numerous officers. His contribution to popularizing the Austro-Hungarian Army was rewarded several times.
Oskar Herrfurth (1862-1934)
As a German painter, he couldn’t resist the spell of the Grimms’ fairy tales. He illustrated dozens of books and designed numerous series of postcards featuring fairy tales (mostly by the Grimm Brothers), often using the same illustration for both media. The featured ‘Pfingsten karte’ in black-and-white design with a motif of a fan is a fine example of his versatility.
George Henry Jenkins (1868-1919)
George Henry Jenkins was an English painter who mostly painted landscapes in England and Wales. His paintings, in both oils and watercolors, were used for postcards on several occasions.
Catharina Klein (1861-1929)
Catharina (sometimes misspelled as Catherine) Klein was a naturalist. Her still life paintings of fruit and flowers made her popular in Europe and North America. Thanks to her realistic approach, Klein’s paintings were used for books, magazines, postcards, and botanical publications. The featured Pentecost card (Pfingsten karte) is a fine example of her attention to detail.
Franz Bernhard Kuhn (1889-1952)
Franz Bernhard Kuhn was a versatile Austrian illustrator and designer, an important representative of Jugendstil, a variation of Art Nouveau, and the Wiener Werkstätte, a movement that fused the applied and fine arts. Numerous postcards with common characteristics were designed for different occasions, from exhibitions to holidays, including Pentecost.
Alfred Mailick (1869-1946)
Alfred Mailic was an impressionist influenced by Romanticism. He mostly painted nature scenes. His first success is associated with hunting scenes, but later he focused mostly on landscapes with occasional paintings of insects and birds. Today, we know him better as a card designer than a painter.
Ulrich Weber (1869-1912)
There is virtually no data about this painter and designer, not even his nationality. According to the publishing houses of his postcard designs, we can only presume that he was German. Additionally, the date of his death suggests that World War I may have been the cause of his short career.
Heinrich Wertheim (1875-1945)
Heinrich Josef von Wertheim preferred to paint with watercolor. His favorite subjects were views from Vienna and its surroundings. Some of these paintings were used for greeting cards, including the featured Pentecost postcard below.
This concludes our selection of vintage greeting cards for Pentecost. In time, we may add a few more, so bookmark this page for further reference. Share your favorite designs with your friends and spread the holiday spirit.