Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken before 1929

This is a pneumatic post card, or ‘Carte Pneumatique’, that was sent by Léonce Bénédite at the Musée National du Luxembourg. The pneumatic post was a uniquely Parisian institution that peaked at the start of the 20th century. Messages were transported in small canisters through a network of tubes using air pressure. In their day, they offered a quick and modern way to send a message across the city, a service marketed to businesses and wealthy clients. This card’s design reflects the bureaucracy surrounding what was still a novel form of communication. Regulations and instructions are printed on the card alongside its destination and postage. The card’s recipient, Philip Zilcken, was a Dutch artist and critic who lived in Paris. These types of ephemera offer an interesting insight into the social and institutional structures of their time. By researching these materials, and understanding the history of the institutions that shaped their production, we can better understand the lived experience of people in the past.