Good Luck in the New Year is a traditional wish, illustrated on antique postcards by a variety of Good Luck symbols. This post focuses on the pig as a symbol decorating New Year postcards, sending wishes for prosperity to the recipient. Our first postcard shows children with well-fed pigs, and the girl carrying a giant shamrock, another popular Good Luck icon. Part of a series published by PFB with nice embossing.
The artist combined these smiling pigs with gold coins to send wishes for wealth and prosperity...their tails offer Good Luck for 1911. A fun collection can be made of New Year date (or date-in-design) postcards which can be found from simple dates, sometimes embellished with flowers or gold ink, to more elaborate designs like this one. Nice embossing and a witty image. (There is another post in this blog of New Year date postcards.)
On this image of humanized or anthropomorphic pigs, a circus act brightens the New Year greeting. The ringleader wears a big blue bow and a tophat. This is a flat postcard with a silver background and a divided Winsch back.
The pig stands for prosperity across cultures. Eating marzipan pigs is a holiday tradition in Germany, while peppermint pigs are served in England. Here children ski downhill with a little pig and a large shamrock.
This early undivided back flat postcard shows a glamorous lady with a short skirt and a glass of bubbly riding a champagne bottle - the flying cork pops a piglet. Wonderful image published in Germany with risque overtones.
Above are two early undivided back postcards with cheery pig images, not titled for the New Year but showing pigs in snowy weather. One has a holiday greeting hand-written on the front and the other is an unused Private Mailing Card. These are flat images with superb fantasy designs of relatively realistic looking pigs.
Below is a woman dressed as a clown riding a large pig. Although the ride looks risky, she wears a big smile. Another New Year Date postcard, this time for 1903. An early undivided back flat image, sent in Belgium in 1902.
Sometimes you wish for Good Luck, sometimes it just catches up with you, as seems to be the case with this little boy losing his britches to a curious pig. A big shamrock completes the Good Luck design. This flat humorous image is postmarked 1913.
PRICE ESTIMATES: Good Luck New Year postcards with pigs can be found at all prices. The postcards in this post range from about $6 to $15, with the 1911 embossed pig tails being the most expensive. These estimates are for postcards in EXCELLENT condition, and they are only estimates.
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