Pinstripes & Parchment

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Postcard Gisborne NZ "Having a Bumping Time" Bumper Boats Fold-Out 1930s
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Pre-linen · 1935

Postcard Gisborne NZ "Having a Bumping Time" Bumper Boats Fold-Out 1930s

Gisborne, New Zealand1935Pre-linenFair-Good

A cheeky illustrated souvenir from Gisborne, New Zealand captures the giddy thrill of bumper boats on open water — a grinning young man in boat #2 faces off against a laughing young woman in boat #5, waves splashing between them, in bold red-and-gold fairground craft that practically leap off the card. This novelty fold-out, published by Tanner Bros. Ltd. of Wellington and London and manufactured entirely in Britain, belongs to the playful "Greetings from…" comic tradition that flourished in seaside resort towns during the interwar decades. The accordion-fold interior unfolds to reveal a cascade of black-and-white real-photo views of Gisborne streets — including multiple shots of Gladstone Road, the city's commercial spine — offering a rare dual-format snapshot of a provincial New Zealand city in the 1930s. Gisborne, perched on Poverty Bay on the East Coast of the North Island, was the first city in the world to greet each new day, and this charming piece reflects its confident resort identity before the postwar era reshaped New Zealand tourism entirely.

$19.95
Fair-Good
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PC-03769 · Tanner Bros., Ltd., Wellington and London
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