Monday, January 16, 2012

The French Influence

These are American trade cards from the 1880s with French writing on them. But who reads French anyway? Best pretend not to,  or you may see yourself featured in some unflattering television spots.



 Here's what the back of the cards looks like.
 I'm not sure what Arnaud sold, but I would love to see what the shop looked like.

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6 comments:

  1. Little NellJanuary 16, 2012 at 3:23 PM

    What a naughty little boy, drinking champagne!

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  2. AnonymousJanuary 16, 2012 at 6:41 PM

    Speaking French, like Mittens? Only in America can being educated be a handicap. And I agree with the above post; I waited until I was 12 to drink my first champagne. Actually, it was sparkling wine.

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  3. dosankodebbieJanuary 17, 2012 at 12:44 AM

    That little girl has her priorities right-- a stack of books!

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  4. AnonymousJanuary 17, 2012 at 9:47 AM

    Little Napoleons in training, cute! It is a good idea to keep the general populace as ignorant as possible Steven, makes keeping them in line alot easier... Freedom Fries anyone?

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  5. HaddockJanuary 17, 2012 at 11:03 AM

    ....there is something common in their eyes

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  6. Mike BrubakerJanuary 22, 2012 at 5:54 PM

    The boy on stilts refers to a very specific French peasant tradition. The Landes region in SW France has boglands that were so challenging for shepherds that they invented stilts to navigate the marshes. There is a pisture of them at the Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landes_forest

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