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Company name: Edgar Schmidt, later renamed into “Postkarte” GmbH
Address: Schlossstr. 28, Dresden (1898), Marschallstr. 12-14, Dresden (1903) with branch in Budapest (Térez-koerut 5), “Postkarte” GmbH was found at Schandauerstr. 34 (1907)
In business from: Jan. 1897 - Aug. 1907 (Edgar Schmidt). Then continued under the company name “Postkarte” GmbH until ?
Printer: yes Publisher: yes
Means of production / workforce: unknown, about medium size
Trademark(s):
Major “Lion” trademark illustrated. Another logo seen from time to time shows a shield with initials E.S.D. inside.
Specialised in: Started off with many topo cards done by collotype process (mostly Germany and Austro-Hungarian Empire), then concentrated on subject/greetings/art reproduction cards printed by chromolitho and halftone (“autochrom”) process
Notes: Guess there was indeed a Mr. Schmidt first. Owner by 1906 was a Karl Koehler. In August 1906 the business was taken over by British businessman Berhard Fell, London. Then exactly a year later renamed into “Postkarte” GmbH and run by a Martin Paul Friedlaender together with Mr. Fell. Friedlaender got the managing director job because the Edgar Schmidt business owed him over 20,000 Marks. Cards with “Postkarte” GmbH imprint or with any type of matching trademark are unknown yet. Appears to had been a rather short-lived business.
Schmidt had definitely his own collotype printing, but it is not clear yet if later card issues were printed by them or came from other sources.
Illustrations (from top):
Vienna, card no. 1791 - p/u 1899
Novelty ser. 8061 (at least 3 diff.) - p/u 1901
Series 1515, card 11 (first names) - pre-1905
Card no. 4069, of pre-1905 origin
Series 1172 - portrait of André Giron - p/u 1909
Series 1622 - Dutch Motif signed ‘Rich. Lanzendorf’. Not p/u, post-1905 production.
Series 1700 - Happy New Year - P/u late Dec. 1906.
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