Snowdon Railway

Every now and then when I'm reading other blogs I'm inspired to dig up a related card from my collection. In this case I was reading about Mt. Snowdon in North Wales on Sheila's blog, A Postcard A Day. I like her post because it not only tells about Mt. Snowdon, but also has a message from the sender recounting the experience of hiking to the top. Sheila also mentions that while many people seem determined to hike the summit, a train was  built in the 19th century. Here's that train.

There is a lot more information on the official railway website, although I couldn't seem to find information on how long the journey takes. I would probably want to hike up and take the train down, but the site warns that there is not always space available for one-way trips down.

Unfortunately, no message on the back.

Hotel Gregorian to the Sanitarium

In April 1906, The Montreal Gazette described the Hotel Gregorian as being among those 'realizing the highest ideals of the best homes with an atmosphere of refinement and well ordered ease'. The hotel is still there and is now operated as the Comfort Inn Manhattan Hotel.

Here's the back of the card.

The message on the card addressed to Mrs. Louise Perry at Dr. Sahler's Sanitarium reads:

I expect to be at the Sanitarium next Sunday and shall be so glad to see you. Please tell Myra Powers I am coming

cordially  E. Hathaway

The story of Dr. Sahler's Sanitarium is probably more interesting than the postcard itself. Dr. Sahler, who was educated at Columbia, was also an expert in the occult. An advertisement in a 1901 edition of the Metaphysical Magazine: a monthly review of the occult sciences, included this clip on the sanitarium:

 

Dr. Sahler also received a glowing assessment in the Phrenological Journal and Science of Health, volume 109, 1900. Phrenology, according to Wikipedia, "is a pseudoscience primarily focused on measurements of the human skull, based on the concept that the brain is the organ of the mind, and that certain brain areas have localized, specific functions or modules." Phrenologists would measure the skull and feel the bumps in the skull to assess personality traits.

Dr. Sahler also worked with mediums and auras, as reported in the Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research (1909). Here's an excerpt:

I only wish that Louise Perry could tell us about her experiences at the Sanitarium.

I'm Only Sleeping

The theme for Sepia Saturday this week is based on a photo of  sleeping man. I found no photos of sleeping men, but I did find a picture of my mother taking a poolside nap circa 1959.

I also found a beautiful illustration in a book of mine from 1840, showing the sleeping Chriemhilt (also known as Kriemhild) from the Nibelungenlied. This book was published with the Middle High German, so the spelling is different. The Nibelungenlied is an epic poem recounting the life of Siegfried the dragon slayer, his eventual murder, and his wife Kriemhild's revenge. The Nibelungenlied also served as the source material for Richard Wagner's opera, The Ring of the Nibelung.

The illustration was drawn by Julius Huebner and rendered as a woodcut by F. Unzelmann. The illustrations in this special celebration edition, are all very intricate and beautiful. I will feature more of them in the near future.