Ancient Buddhist Temple Gwalior
Buddhism had largely departed India by this time, having flourished between the 3rd century BCE and 13th century CE, but its temples still stood and were frequently subjects of postcards.
Religion
The Great Burning Ghat in Benares
[Original German] Der Grosse Verbrennungs Platz in Benares [end]
One of the earliest artist-signed postcards of India.
Greetings from Bombay
From an early "Greetings from" series by D.M. Macropolo & Co., a renowned Raj tobacconist with retail stores in Kolkata and Mumbai.
Calcutta
One of the earliest postcards of India, Calcutta, published by W. Rossler, a German or Austrian photographer in the city in 1897. Lithograph, Court sized, Printed in Austria. Undivided back.
The Sampan Pagoda - Shwegyeen
The significance of Buddhism in Burma [Myanmar] reflected in a landscape dotted with pagodas. Shwegyin is close to the Indian border on the western side of Myanmar.
Madras. San Thome Cathedral
[Original caption] San Thome Cathedral. The town of S. Thome, now part of Madras City, was named after the Portugese pioneers, after St. Thomas the Apostle, who is said to have evangelized the country.
Ceylon. Hindoo God Siva.
[Original caption] Hindoo God Siva: Ceylon. This is Brahma the Creator under his manifestation as Siva the Destroyer and Reproducer. The peacock beside him is that ridden by Saraswati, goddess of music and speech, Brahmas wife.
The Burning Ghat, Benares
Among the earliest postcards of Varanasi, this court-sized card was made from an albumen photograph (its title is still inscribed in the negative) and framed by a floral design.
Hindu Temple Colombo
[Original caption] Hindoo Temple, Colombo. In the Pettah or native quarter of Colombo is Sea Street, and in Sea Street are twin Hindoo temples, one of which is shown here.
Greetings from India
This early postcard was published by the "Bazaar for the Suffering Child," a missionary group in Germany for domestic consumption and draws our attention to two features of early European postcards.
