Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

National Polytechnic Museum Sofia host exhibition featuring postcards from the 20th century

Photo: National Polytechnic Museum Sofia

A Christmas greeting, a marriage proposal or news about the end of the war. All of this was written on a postcard without an envelope and a stamp and was delivered to an address. The past does not seem to be as far away as we think, reminds the exhibition "Vernissage of Vanity" of the Kardzhali Regional History Museum. The National Polytechnic Museum Sofia plays host to the exhibition.

The exhibition presents Katisha Ilieva's family collection of 137 black-and-white and coloured postcards covering the period 1913-1931. Most of them are from the period of the First World War (1914-1918) and were sent from the battle front - the so-called soldiers postcards. Others are Christmas, New Year and Easter postcards, name day greeting cards and postcards celebrating the the end of the war, the coronation of King Boris III, etc.

The postcards themselves are small works of art and the exhibition is the first initiative to show them in this light. They are an authentic reflection of historical reality, people‘s daily lives, taste and vanity in miniature, said the curators of the exhibition. Most exhibits are made by European printing houses, including printing houses from Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, German, France and Bulgaria. The messages written on the back of each beautiful postcard reflect the wide variety of human emotions.

The exhibition “Vernissage of Vanity” visits Sofia on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the National Polytechnic Museum and will continue until March 2023.

You can find more interesting facts related to the popular Christmas tradition of sending greeting cards in Radio Bulgaria’s article named "When did the first Christmas tree appear in Bulgaria?".




Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Museum of Archaeology in Burgas displays pipes and tobacco from Medieval Bulgaria

Pipes from the end of the 17 th , the 18 th and the 19 th century and the tradition of growing tobacco in Bulgaria are presented in the newest exposition at the Museum of Archaeology in Burgas. “Pipes like this are to be found often on the..

published on 4/5/25 8:30 AM

Who is Marko Totev and why his name became a byword for bad luck

In Bulgaria, when we talk about a person with bad luck, we often say: "Ah, what a Marko Totev!" But who exactly was Marko Totev, and how did his name become a byword for a person with ill fortune and a bad luck? "He was a Bulgarian public figure..

published on 4/1/25 8:56 AM

Life as a string of Ramadans – Muslims in Bulgaria celebrate Bayram

30 March marks the end of the most blessed time of the year, as Muslims call the month of Ramadan. This year it started on 1 March, and the most important obligation Muslims have during this 30-day period is to refrain from food, drink and temptation..

published on 3/30/25 8:15 AM