1903 Postcard Map of Sea Voyage from Hamburg, Germany to Yokohama, Japan

This is a charming 1903 set of hand-colored pictorial map postcards with extensive manuscript content recording a voyage from Hamburg, Germany to Yokohama, Japan, including visits to Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Suez, and more. Divided into twelve different postcards, the cards depict the route from Hamburg through the English Channel and the Strait of Gibraltar, across the Mediterranean to the Suez Canal, then through the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean and Sri Lanka, Singapore, Hong Kong, Fuzhou, Shanghai, Nagasaki, and finally Yokohama. Beautiful views adorn each of the twelve cards, including illustrations of the Needles on the Isle of Wight, Gibraltar, the lighthouse at Genoa, the city of Aden in Yemen, the Suez Canal, Hong Kong, Colombo, and Nagasaki.

Information About This Set of Postcards

Each postcard bears hand-written messages from the sender, known only as 'P'. Each card is dated, with the first date being November 9, 1903 and the last, February 15, 1904. It appears that all twelve postcards were written in Fuzhou, and postmarks on the verso indicate that the cards transited through Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Dublin before being delivered to a school in England. This, along with the phrases 'my love' and 'with love,' suggests that these were sent to either a child attending, or a loved one teaching, at an English boarding school.

Publication History and Census

These postcards bear neither a publisher nor a copyright date, making them extremely difficult to trace. Since they are postcards, it seems likely that numerous examples of this twelve-card set were printed, although we have been unable to locate any surviving examples.