Exhibitions & Events

An Illustrated History of the Embroidered Silk Postcards is the standard reference book on embroidered silk postcards. It contains references to over 2600 different cards with over 270 illustrations. The section on Exhibitions lists only 8 cards and is tucked away amongst the miscellaneous subjects. The cards listed below are additional cards discovered since the book was published. The new additions are shown in RED.

This new section lists all known embroidered silk postcards from or celebrating an Exhibition, Festival, Sports Meeting, Commemoration, or other event. It is a complete listing of all known cards, including all the cards in the book. It is likely that the cards were mainly or only available at the event itself and they are all very rare. Most of them are fully embroidered, although some have a printed information about the event on the frame. The cards span the time of some of the earliest known embroidered silk postcards from 1900 to the late 1930s.

Images of a representative selection of cards are shown beneath the listings.

Information and images on this site are © Ian Collins 2021.

No part may be reproduced, stored, transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the author.

1900 The Paris Exposition

EXPOSITION UNIVERSELLE 1900. SOUVENIR DU VILLAGE SUISSE PARIS (printed)

Carnation with bud and foliage

Single rose bud with foliage

Three rose buds with foliage

SOUVENIR DU VILLAGE SUISSE PARIS EXPOSITION 1900 (printed)

Carnation with bud and foliage

Chalet with Swiss flag shield, edelweiss and alpenrosen

Chalet with mountains, lake and trees

Chalet with steps, mountains and trees

Chalet with trees

Chalet with trees and bridge over stream

Edelweiss with foliage

French flag with entwined RF and laurel

Shrine amongst trees in mountains

Swiss flag shield with edelweiss

Union Jack with rose, thistle and shamrock

USA flag with laurel

1901 The Vaudoise Cantonal Exhibition

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPOSITION CANTONALE VAUDOISE VEVEY JUIN-SEPTEMBRE 1901 (printed)

Vevey town crest

1904 The Basle Festival

SOUVENIR FETE DU 14 JUILLET (printed) RF with French flag and laurel

1904 The St Gallen Shooting Festival

1904 Crossed rifles, with laurel wreath tied with ribbon

EIDGENOSS SCHUTZENFEST ST GALLEN 1904 Bear with Swiss shield and sheathed axe, with target over crossed rifles

EIDGEN. SCHUTZERS FEST 1904 Crossed rifles with target and flowers

GRUSS AUS St. GALLEN Target with marker, with flags and flowers

SOUVENIR. St. GALL. SCHUTZENFEST. 1904 St Gallen flag, Swiss shield and edelweiss

1904 The St Louis World's Fair

St LOUIS 1904 WORLD'S FAIR (printed) Building with columns and canal (Palace of Education)

Building with flags, with gondola on canal (Palace of Liberal Arts)

Building with towers and flags (Palace of Machinery)

Building with waterfalls (Cascade Gardens)

Chalet amongst trees (Philippine village)

1905 The Zurich Song Festival

EIDG SANGERFEST ZURICH Swiss shield over lyre with flowers

ZURICH EIDG. SANGERFEST Swiss shield inside laurel, tied with ribbons

1906 The Milan International Exposition

ESPOSIZIONE INTERNATIONALE MILANO 1906 (printed) Basket of roses and forget-me-nots

1907 The Amriswil Embroidery Exhibition

STICKEREI-AUSTELLUNG AMRISWIL 5.u.6. MAI 1907 Garlands of small forget-me-nots and roses

1907 The Amriswil Song Festival

KANT. SANGERFEST AMRISWIL Thurgau Canton shield, musical notes and laurel

1907 The Jamestown Exposition

JAMES TOWN 1607 1907 Indian with feathered head-dress and United States flag

1907 The Zurich Shooting Festival

(No caption) Swiss cross, rifleman on Zurich shield, targets and rifles

Swiss cross, Zurich shield, crossed rifles and target

Zurich and Swiss shields, with target over crossed rifles

EIDG. SCHUTZENFEST 7-18 JULI 1907 ZURICH (printed) Zurich and Swiss shields, with target over crossed rifles

1909 The Hudson Fulton Celebration

HALF MOON Sailing ship (Hudson's ship that discovered north Canada)

1914 The Lyon Exposition

EXPOSITION DE LYON 1914 Lyon city crest

1915 The Panama Pacific Exhibition

1915 PANAMA PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION SAN FRANSISCO, CAL. (printed)

American flag shield under printed eagle

EXPOSITION 1915 SAN FRANCISCO Art Nouveau lady holding a ribbon with the caption

PANAMA PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION 1915 SAN FRANSISCO (printed)

Red roses under printed Red Indian holding cornucopia

PAN. PAC. INT.EXP. 1915 Spray of lily of the valley

PAN.PAC.EXP. SAN FRANCISCO American eagle on egg

PAN.PAC.EXP. SAN FRANCISCO Large caption with foliage

PAN.PAC.EXP. SAN FRANCISCO Spray of poppies

SAN FRANSISCO 1915 Grizzly bear with arrow in its back

SOUVENIR OF SAN FRANCISCO FESTIVAL HALL Domed building with columns

1916 The Lyon Fair

SOUVENIR FOIRE DE LYON 1916 City crest with six Allied flag roundels

1921 Opening the School House, Kenzenau, Switzerland

SCHULHAUS EINWEIHUNG KENZENAU 1921 (part printed) Building with Thurgau Canton shield, roses and forget me nots

1921 Unveiling the Statue to the Soldiers, Frauenfeld, Switzerland

EINWIRHUNG DES SOLDATEN DENKMALS IN FRAUENFELD 16. OKTOBER 1921 (part printed)

Statue with Thurgau Canton shield, crossed rifles and Alpine flowers

1922 The Buchs Trade Exhibition, Switzerland

1. WERDENBERGISCHE AUSSTELLUNG BUCHS 1922 Castle in parkland

1922 The St Gallen Gymnastics Festival

EIDGEN. TURNFEST 21 23 JULI 1922 Turnfest logo in laurel wreath, with Alpine flowers

TURNERGRUSS AUS ST GALLEN Turnfest logo in laurel wreath, with Alpine flowers

TURNER GRUSS Turnfest logo with Swiss shield and Alpine flowers

CORDIAL SALUT DE GYM Turnfest logo with Swiss shield and Alpine flowers

1923 The Rhine Valley Exhibition

VI. RHEINTHALISCHE AUSSTELLUNG BERNECK 1923 Castle among trees, with mountains

1923 The Wil Canton Gymnastics Festival

KANTONAL TURNFEST IN WIL 28 30 JULI 1923 Turnfest logo in laurel wreath, with edelweiss and alpenrosen

1924 The Toulouse Exhibition

EXPOSITION DE TOULOUSE Exhibition entrance with French flags

1924 1925 The British Empire Exhibition

BRITISH EMPIRE EXHIBITION 1924 Crown over globe with floral garland

BRITISH EMPIRE EXHIBITION 1925 Lion on globe under crown with floral garland

BRITISH EMPIRE EXHIBITION 1925 Lion under crown

SOUVENIR OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE WEMBLEY Lion inside belt with motto under crown, with flowers

1925 The Toronto Exhibition

I’M THINKING OF YOU IN TORONTO EXHIBITION (written in appliquéd sparkle)

Red Ensign

1927 St Gallen Exhibition

ST. GALLISCHE AUSTELLUNG 1927 St Gallen bear holding Swiss shield

1929 The Great Scouts Jamboree

GREAT JAMBOREE 1929 FROM BIRKENHEAD BE PREPARED

The Boy Scout's fleur de lys badge

1930 The Anvers Exposition

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPOSITION D'ANVERS Sun rising over water, with pansies

1930 Commemoration of first flight from Paris to New York

2.9.30 PARIS-NEW-YORK Aeroplane with insignia, with appliqued photographs of the pilots, Costes & Bellonte

1931 The Exposition Coloniale Internationale, Paris

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPON COLONIALE Caption with insert hankerchief

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPOSITION COLONIALE Chinese man with pagoda, yacht on sea and crossed French flags

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPOSITION COLONIALE Female native blowing trumpet in front of the Eiffel Tower

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPOSITION COLONIALE Dancing native holding shield, with hut and sun

SOUVENIR DE L'EXPOSITION COLONIALE Woman with dancing native and dancing Chinese man

SOUVENIR DE PARIS ET D'AFRIQUE Eiffel Tower, mosque and palm trees

SOUVENIR DE PARIS ET D'ALGERIE Man on camel with French flags, looking towards L'Arc de Triomphe

TEMPLE D'ANKORA Temple building

1933 The Bremgarten Rowing Society 50th Anniversary

ZUM 50 JAHRIGEN JUBULAUM 1883-1933 PONTONIER-FAHRVEREIN BREMGARTEN (printed)

Men rowing boat flying Aargau Canton flag, towards town

1933 The German Gymnastics Festival, Stuttgart

ZUR ERINNERUNG! 15. DEUTSCHES TURNFEST - STUTTGART 22-30 JULI 1933 (printed)

Flagpole with logo and laurel wreath, with Nazi and German flags

Turnfest and Nazi flags with foliage