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The first commercial
Christmas cards were commissioned by Sir Henry Cole in London, 1843, and
featured an illustration by John Callcott Horsley. The picture, of a
family with a small child drinking wine together, proved controversial,
but the idea was shrewd: Cole had helped introduce the Penny Post three
years earlier. Two batches totaling 2050 cards were printed and sold that
year for a shilling each.
Early English cards rarely showed winter or religious themes, instead
favoring flowers, fairies and other fanciful designs that reminded the
recipient of the approach of spring. Humorous and sentimental images of
children and animals were popular, as were increasingly elaborate shapes,
decorations and materials. In 1875 Louis Prang became the first printer to
offer cards in America, though the popularity of his cards led to cheap
imitations that eventually drove him from the market. The advent of the
postcard spelled the end for elaborate Victorian-style cards, but by the
1920s, cards with envelopes had returned.
The production of Christmas cards was, throughout the 20th century, a
profitable business for many stationery manufacturers, with the design of
cards continually evolving with changing tastes and printing techniques.
The World Wars brought cards with patriotic themes. Idiosyncratic "studio
cards" with cartoon illustrations and sometimes risque humor caught on in
the 1950s. Nostalgic, sentimental, and religious images have continued in
popularity, and, in the 21st century, reproductions of Victorian and
Edwardian cards are easy to obtain. Modern Christmas cards can be bought
individually but are also sold in packs of the same or varied designs.
In recent decades changes in technology may be responsible for the decline
of the Christmas card. The estimated number of cards received by American
households dropped from 29 in 1987 to 20 in 2004. Email and telephones
allow for more frequent contact and are easier for generations raised
without handwritten letters - especially given the availability of
websites offering free email Christmas cards. Despite the decline, 1.9
billion cards were sent in the U.S. in 2005 alone. |
