Traditional Christmas Cards

December 15, 2007
Italy

card1 Traditional Christmas CardsFeeling nostalgia for an old fashioned Christmas? These quaint and colorful cards from the ’50s show a lot about Italy’s not so distant past. Pastel colored angels, children, and sweet scenes contrast with today’s more commercial reindeer, Santas and snowmen. Baby Jesus is often featured, but not always, and loose re-interpretation of the nativity story is common, such as in the 2nd image (below), where gifts are born by three children instead of three kings.

card2 Traditional Christmas CardsWhere to find them? Bancarelle (literally “small benches”, meaning sidewalk stalls) selling ephemera, country fairs, and flea markets, and you can even find them occasionally in cartolerie or stationary shops that don’t just stock the contemporary styles.

A nice traditional way to wish family and friends “Auguri” and “Buon Natale”.card4 Traditional Christmas Cards


Mary Jane Cryan

Contributed by Mary Jane Cryan (see bio) -

Historian, author of guides and books on Italy and Italian history, publisher, cruise ship lecturer  and founder of Elegant Etruria  travel consultancy.  Mary Jane was one of the first contributors to  Italian Notebook  in 2007.    Her blog  50yearsinItaly  tells the whole story.