Antique & Vintage Postcards

A hauntingly beautiful portrait emerges from deep shadow — this striking black-and-white postcard presents a dramatic side-profile likeness of John Muir, the legendary Scottish-American naturalist and father of the American national parks movement, rendered in high contrast against a near-black background. Issued in honor of Muir Woods National Monument near Mill Valley, California, the card bears Muir's birth and death dates (April 21, 1838 – December 24, 1914) and catalog number Zan 1802. The image's stark, almost painterly quality makes it one of the more compelling souvenir cards issued for this beloved redwood grove north of San Francisco, which was established as a national monument in 1908 and named after Muir by President Theodore Roosevelt. The reverse is unused and blank, with a simple divided-back layout typical of mid-century souvenir production.