Birthday Greeting with Swastika – Hanover, PA (1910)
In other postcard stories, I have noted the common use of the swastika as a “good luck” symbol on birthday cards and New Year’s greetings in the early years of the 20th century.
Before the rise of the Nazis in the German Third Reich, the swastika had no association with political movements – certainly not with the anti-Semitic, anti-immigrant, anti-gay, racism that was fostered in Germany.
Unfortunately, this once-innocent design is now associated with the great horror of genocide.
On May 28, 1910, Mary Dell of Hanover received a postcard beautifully illustrated with red poppies, daisies, and a blue flower I do not recognize.
The card was sent by friends whose family name is inscribed on the face, but which I cannot decipher.
Printed in Germany, the postcard is lightly embossed and represents the achievements of the “golden age” of postcards.
One hopes that Mary enjoyed happiness and good fortune on her birthday.
NOTE: I usually buy these postcards when I see them so that they cannot be collected by neo-Nazis who use them to “normalize” the hatred, bigotry, and racism of our own time.
