A smiling young woman stands with hands proudly on her hips, wearing the unmistakable grande coiffe — the enormous black satin bow headdress that became the defining symbol of Alsatian identity in the decades after France's traumatic loss of the region to Germany in 1871. Her layered costume blazes with color: a white ruffled blouse, deep blue velvet bodice, rich green apron, and a sweeping red skirt trimmed in gold — a hand-tinted photograph that transforms a simple studio portrait into a vibrant cultural statement. The caption reads both in German ("Elsässerin") and French ("Alsacienne"), reflecting the contested bilingual identity of a region that would remain German until 1918. Postcards like this one were enormously popular souvenirs, quietly reinforcing Alsatian pride during the years of German administration. The back is a classic undivided Postkarte / Carte postale, printed by what appears to be Freiburg's Kunstverlag Bissinger, placing production circa 1898–1904.