What's online?
The entire collection is available online. Postcards are scanned both front and back. When present, this includes any messages sent to the recipient of the card. Online titles were transcribed directly from the postcards. Descriptions created by the University of Pittsburgh Library System librarian for Latin American Studies and Eduardo Lozano Collection.
A Notice on Harmful or Offensive Language
While using the Latin American Postcard Collection, please consider its context. Many of these postcards were published in the early 20th century. Due to the nature of these historical materials, there are occurrences of language, positions, and values that do not align with our values and practices at the University of Pittsburgh.
When harmful, offensive, or misrepresentative language is present and part of the original archival materials, it is recognized as best practice to retain such information so as not to censor or alter the historical record and to maintain an understanding of the context and time period in which these items were first created.
What's in the entire collection?
The collection consists of approximately 900 postcards collected by Dr. Anton Rosenthal. The collection focuses on postcards from Latin American countries, including Cuba, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The bulk of the postcards are from Cuba and depict tourism related images such as hotels, beaches, entertainment, export products, and street life in Havana and Santiago. Postcards also depict street scenes, buildings, and monuments in other major Latin American cities. A majority of the postcards are from the pre-1918 era, but the collection contains postcards from as late as the 1940s.
About Dr. Anton Rosenthal.
Dr. Anton Benjamin Rosenthal is a professor emeritus from the Department of History at the University of Kansas. Dr. Rosenthal retired in 2020. His research interests include themes of urban public space, transportation, popular culture, and street life in early 20th century Latin America. He has an interest in the visual history of Latin America, particularly in the southern cone region, ranging into the contemporary period. Dr. Rosenthal assembled this collection of postcards during the course of his academic career.
Reddit
Twitter
Facebook