A 1920 postcard featuring twin portrait photographs of future British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan and Dorothy Macmillan as newlyweds, signed by both, an optimistic portrait of what would become a

$250 · Offered by Biblio

Signed

London: Bassano Ltd., 1920. Postcard. This double-signed 1920 souvenir postcard of newly wed Harold and Dorothy Macmillan heralds what would become a long, complicated, and deeply compromised marriage. The postcard features side-by-side oval portrait photographs, signed, respectively “Harold Macmillan” and “Dorothy Macmillan” at the bottom of each portrait. Condition of the postcard is very good, complete and substantially clean, though with a light crease across the lower left corner, another light crease at the upper left edge, and mild soiling. The only print credit is “Bassano” discreetly blind stamped at the lower right corner below Dorothy’s portrait. This indicates printing by Bassano Ltd., one of the most prominent society portrait photography studios in London. Harold and Dorothy had a society wedding at St Margaret’s, Westminster, on 21 April 1920. This postcard almost certainly dates from the time of their marriage or shortly thereafter. The studio-portrait style and Bassano printing of the item indicate that it was tied to the wedding. Macmillan, along with Clement Attlee, was one of only two British prime ministers to be seriously wounded in battle. For Macmillan, it was actually twice, both times during the First World War, in his right hand, pelvis, and left thigh; the experience gave him “compassion, resilience, and perspective.” It also left him with “a limp handshake, a dragging gait, and sporadic pain.” None of this left him unable to successfully woo Lady

  • Publisher: Bassano Ltd.
  • Year: 1920
  • Binding: unknown

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