|
Collecting Fergus Mackain’s sketches can be challenging, not least because little is known about his time in France and no official catalog exists of his works. This website aims to help collectors and researchers by collating the most up to date information, however there are some significant gaps in knowledge that need to be filled. You can help … you might have a card that no-one else has heard of, or has been “lost” since WW1, or includes some handwritten notes that provide a clue as to their origin. Here are some areas where help is needed! |
|
Sammy’s Life |
Do you have any examples of Mackain’s “Sketches of Sammy’s Life in France”? This very rare series, depicting the life of American soldiers (“Sammy” as opposed to British “Tommy”) in France in WW1 was published later in the war. It is believed that four sets were produced by Gaultier in September 1918 for US forces arriving in Calais: 1. At the Base 2. Up the Line (set a) 3. Up the Line (set b) 4. Out on Rest Only a handful of examples of “Sammy’s Life” cards are known to exist, and it has not even been confirmed whether all the sets were ultimately printed and distributed for sale. The cards that do exist are very similar in style, layout and content to their “Tommy’s Life” counterparts, with some obvious differences in uniform, setting, and language that would be more recognizable to US soldiers.
Detail from comparable cards in the “Up the Line” set, with the British “Tommy’s Life” card on the left, and the American “Sammy’s Life” version on the right. If you have a Sammy’s Life cards, you can help this website by providing your comments below, or sending any information (and if possible, a scan of the card’s front and rear) to fmsketches@macbrem.com |
|
Dates of Use |
Do you have any “used” Mackain cards? While some of Mackain’s postcard sets helpfully include an official publication date printed on the rear of each card, the majority of sets do not, so it is often unclear when sets were originally published for purchase by soldiers. However, used cards often contain valuable clues – such as when a soldier wrote a personal message on it (handwritten date) and/or posted it (stamped date) – that can help to determine the earliest and latest “date of use”. Examples of dates on the same card: A project is underway to record these earliest and latest known dates of use for each set to better determine when they were published. The table below has the most current information on each set variant. If you have a Mackain card that has a handwritten or stamped (postmarked) date on the back, you can help this project by providing your comments below, or sending this information (and if possible, a scan of the card’s front and rear) to fmsketches@macbrem.com |
|
Wrappers / Envelopes |
Do you have any postcard wrappers or envelopes for the follow sets? · Greetings Cards · Cheerful Tommy · Sammy’s Life in France (see other question about this series) The most well-known Mackain postcard sets were provided in open wrappers (also called envelopes). Information about the set was printed on thin, brownish paper, and this wrapped around the cards so that they were held together in one packet. Examples exist for the “Tommy’s Life” series of 10 cards (long set) and 8 cards (short set), but it is unknown whether these wrappers were also created for the Greetings or Cheerful Tommy sets. If you know anything about these wrappers, or own a sample, you can help this website by providing your comments below, or sending any information (and if possible, a scan of the wrapper) to fmsketches@macbrem.com |
|
“Large” Cards |
Do you have any examples of these or other “Large” cards produced by Mackain? · “Dining al fresco” · “Housie! Housie! Who says a card?” · “Learning to use your most important weapon” · “A good bed at last!” An advertisement for Mackain’s “Tommy’s Life” cards appears at the rear of the “Familiar French” phrasebook. The advertisement includes some information about certain of these cards that were “reproduced in large sizes, black and white or artistically coloured, suitable for framing”. It goes on to say that these drawings were 14 by 9 inches and printed on “de luxe” paper and were “on sale at any shop which stocks postcards or English-French books”. Only one example of large cards is known to exist. If you know anything about these large cards, or own a sample, you can help this website by providing your comments below, or sending any information (and if possible, a scan of the card) to fmsketches@macbrem.com |
Postcards – Earliest and Latest Known Dates of Use
|
Set |
Back |
Front |
Publication Date |
Earliest Use |
Latest Use |
|
Imp. P. Gaultier, Boulogne-s.-Mer. – Visa Militaire, 9-10-17. |
|
Oct 9, 1917 |
Jul 13 1918 |
Aug 18 1918 | |
|
|
Imp. P. Gaultier, Boulogne-s.-Mer. – Ed P. G. Vise 9-10-17. |
|
Oct 9, 1917 |
Jul 12 1918 |
Aug 28 1918 |
|
|
Imp. G. Savigny, Paris – P.G. |
|
|
? |
? |
|
|
Paris – Imp. G. Savigny, 80, rue de Clery |
|
|
? |
? |
|
Imp. P. Gaultier, Boulogne-s.-Mer. – Ed P. G. Vise 1-11-17 |
|
Nov 1, 1917 |
Feb 12 1918 |
Aug 23 1918 | |
|
|
Imp. G. Savigny, Paris – P.G. |
|
|
? |
? |
|
|
Paris. – Imp. G. Savigny, 80, rue de Clery. |
|
|
? |
? |
|
Imp. P. Gaultier, Boulogne-s.-Mer. – Ed. P. G. Vise Paris 763 |
|
|
|
Aug 1918 | |
|
|
Imp. G. Savigny, Paris – P.G. |
Vise Paris 763 |
|
Mar 24 1918 |
Sep 30 1918 |
|
|
Paris. – Imp. G. Savigny, 80, rue de Clery. |
Vise Paris 763 |
|
Nov 30 1918 |
Nov 30 1918 |
|
Imp. P. Gaultier, Boulogne-s.-Mer. – Ed. P. G. Vise Paris 800 |
|
|
? |
? | |
|
|
Imp. G. Savigny, Paris. – P.G. |
Vise Paris 800 |
|
Feb 12 1918 |
Oct 1918 |
|
|
Paris. – Imp. G. Savigny, 80, rue de Clery |
Vise Paris 800 |
|
|
|
|
Imp. G. Savigny, Paris. – P.G. – Visa Paris 713 |
|
|
Dec 17 1917 |
May 1918 | |
|
|
Paris. – Imp. G. Savigny, 80, rue de Clery |
Vise Paris 713 |
|
|
|
|
Imp. P. Gaultier, Boulogne-s-Mer. – Ed. P. G. Vise. 18-1-18 |
|
Jan 18, 1918 |
Aug 13 1918 |
Sep 18 1918 |
No comments :
Post a Comment