Gyulai Éva - Viga Gyula (szerk.): Történet - muzeológia : Tanulmányok a múzeumi tudományok köréből a 60 éves Veres László tiszteletére (Miskolc, 2010)

GYŰJTEMÉNYEK - IPARMÜVÉSZET-TÖRTÉNET - Fazekasné Majoros Judit: A képeslap mint történeti dokumentum

Postcards as historical documents Picture postcards are printed items which, in accordance with the postal regulations, are postage paid and forwarded in an open fonn. The illustrated side was made by printing or using photographic procedures and reproduced in large numbers. As documents, postcards share many similarities with the photos serving as their source. Postcards can be regarded as artefactual evidence owing to their functionality and as written source material by virtue of the messages they bear. The most important information on postcards is visual because the illustrated side was made using printing or photographic techniques and postcards can thus be regarded as photographic documents. The visual information preserved on picture postcards is part of historical iconography, encompassing all visual documents originating from different periods. In terms of reliability and identification, picture postcards are often more important documents of a particular period than other artefacts because they not only preserve a part of the visual reality, but also offer textual information. Picture postcards are one of the most important visual sources of late 19th century and 20th century history, whose importance is now being acknowledged in historical studies too. Judit Majoros Fazekasné IIA