1910 Toboggan Skiers Cauterets France Vintage Postcard, Les Pyrénées
About This Vintage Postcard
This captivating monochrome postcard captures the early days of winter sports in Cauterets, a renowned spa town in the Hautes-Pyrénées department of southwestern France. The scene features a group of adventurous skiers and a long wooden toboggan packed with well-dressed tourists navigating a snowy slope. Cauterets became a popular winter destination in the early 20th century, transitioning from its 19th-century fame as a thermal spa for high society to a pioneer in Pyrenean skiing. The image provides a fascinating look at period winter attire and early sporting equipment, highlighting the "Golden Age" of alpine recreation in the French Pyrenees.
Details
Era: Divided Back (Circa 1905–1915)
City: Cauterets
State or Region: Hautes-Pyrénées, Occitanie
Country: France
Topic: Cauterets, Pyrenees Mountains, Early Skiing, Tobogganing, Winter Sports History
Condition: Uncirculated
Postage: None
Address Side: divided back
Orientation: Horizontal (Landscape)
Artist / Photographer: Unknown
Publisher: Edition A. Ducasse
Printer: Phototypie Labouche Frères, Toulouse
Print Type: Phototypie
Additional Information
This postcard was printed by the famous Labouche Frères of Toulouse, whose distinctive "LF" logo within a heart is visible in the bottom left corner of the address side. Labouche Frères were among the most prolific and respected printers in the history of French postcards, renowned for their extensive "Les Pyrénées" series. The use of the photogravure process allowed for exceptional photographic detail and the deep tonal range required to capture the bright highlights of the snow against the dark winter clothing. Interestingly, the skiers in the image are using single long poles, a common technique in the early 1900s before the two-pole method became standard. Cauterets remains a top-tier ski resort today, particularly known for its high-altitude Cirque du Lys slopes.
This postcard would look great framed or make an excellent addition to any collection.
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