Antique Christmas Cards by M. I. Hummel
Maria Innocentia Hummel created numerous Christmas postcards in her signature style with typical portraits of children which achieved world fame through Hummel figurines. Her drawings came first, of course, but most of her work was a synergy of illustrations and figurines. We will present her old Christmas cards which still shine in timeless beauty.
Christmas picture postcards by Hummel are sorted by the prevailing theme, which is used as a subtitle.
We need to add that Christmas holidays in Europe typically start with the day before Christams and last till New Year. This means many vintage christmas cards (not just Hummel's) are designed with both important dates in mind, what is seen in greetings like Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Candles
Candles are important elements of Christmas celebrations. They are present during Advent time. Four candles are lit during Advent, representing one week each. One candle is used on each of Advent Sundays.
The first candle represents hope. Its color is purple, just like the second candle. This one stands for faith. The third candle is pink and it symbolizes joy. The fourth and last candle is purple, again. It stands for peace.
The first candle represents hope. Its color is purple, just like the second candle. This one stands for faith. The third candle is pink and it symbolizes joy. The fourth and last candle is purple, again. It stands for peace.
Red (and white) candles were the preferred choice in Germany, so we can obviously expect these colors in Hummel's Xmas cards. Due to the superiority of the German printing technique such postcards were exported to other countries on a large scale. British and especially American buyers adopted them very soon and many believe that red is the 'right' color.
Well, isn't the thought that really counts?
If yu are interested to dig a bit deeper, you can always check this article about color symbolism.
Baby Jesus
Christmas is a celebration of birth and rebirth with deep roots in Pagan traditions. While Pagans celebrated the rebirth of the Sun, Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus.
Maria Innocentia Hummel presented baby Jesus in different situations.
Jesus with his mother Mary is probably the least typical of her work, especially if we are not familiar with Hummel's postcards with religious themes. Angels visiting the baby are more known.
They can visit one by one, or come in groups.
Baby Jesus can have different visitors as well.
Music
Christmas is a time for celebration and music is another important element. Miss Hummel portrayed it with numerous scenes of singing or playing different instruments on her Xmas picture cards.
As we can see, everybody loves music. Some play in groups, others alone.
Anyway, music always connects people. It's a universal language, after all.
Decorated Letters
The last group of postcards by Hummel has decorated capital letters as a common characteristic. The tradition of decorated letters is much older than printing. We can trace it back to the earliest books, written by hand, mostly locked behind thick walls of monasteries and other places where rare literate people wrote or rewrote the first books.
A decorative capital letter in Hummel picture postcards is another tiny trick to connect old times with the present. This is how tradition survives.
All presented vintage Christmas postcards are in the Public Domain in countries with author + 70 years rule. We spent a lot of time collecting and editing them. It would be of great help if you could help us promote the outstanding work by Maria I. Hummel through your channels (social media, bookmarking, sharing, blogging, etc.)
Thanks for your visit!