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Train (PR of China)
When we get around to it, we’ll check the Chinese caption on the reverse to see where this actually is in China, but for now we just focus on the railroad. Card was mailed from Hong Kong (not yet China) in 1979, with stamp and its colourful margin strip, and completely full Hong Kong postmark, as well as blue tri-lingual airmail sticker affixed. Grade: 3
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Peak Tram near Peak Tower (Hong Kong)
As with everything else in Hong Kong, pretty much all of this picture would no longer look like this. Visitors don’t seem to mind, though. Grade: 2
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Peak Tram (Hong Kong)
Accurate at the time, but nothing looks like this now. Darker paint? Newer version of carriages? A touch of smog? Whatever. Unused card. Grade: 1
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Beijing train station
The caption for this and other cards in this immediate series is only in Chinese. Unused. Grade: 1
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Lanterns used in rail-road signaling (Recife, Brazil)
This card, mailed in 2010 with two different large stamps and two postmarks, also has a blue Prioritario sticker affixed. It shows lanterns on display at Recife’s Museu do Homem do Nordeste. Great for railroad buffs! Grade: 1
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Vestibule of Mayakovskaya Metro station, 1938 (Moscow)
The photo of this mailed card may be from 1938 but the card is contemporary, mailed in 2010 with three stamps and two very large and full Moscow postmarks. Can’t do much better with a modern card. Grade: 1
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Metro station Mayakovskaya 1938 (Moscow)
From 2010, mailed with a stamp and very heavy postmark. Grade: 1
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Czech Republic
Terrific card mailed in 2011 with two stamps, full postmark, and blue Prioritaire sticker affixed. The only problem is that the extensive caption is only in Czech. This is, of course, not a problem if you speak Czech or collect cards of trains. Grade: 1
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Golden Spike, Union Pacific (Council Bluffs, Iowa)
Unused Curteich-Chicago card OB340-N, aged and with inked initials near the postage area. The caption tells us: “Rearing its head 56 feet into the air is this huge concrete replica of a railroad spike, located at the zero-zero mile post of the Union Pacific …” Grade: 3
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Union Station, St. Louis (Missouri)
Terrific old Buxton & Skinner card S39, mailed in 1913 with stamp and full postmark. Grade: 1
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Union Station, Omaha (Nebraska)
Unused Curt Teich C.T. Art-Colortone linen card 7A-H583 in outstanding condition. Grade: 1
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Traditional Train (Taiwan)
This card was mailed, and has two stamps but no postmark. There’s a substantial caption in Chinese on the reverse. Grade: 3
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Push-Pull Train Deh 4/4 II (Switzerland)
Mailed in 2011, the postmark is crystal clear on the front of the card but the two stamps on the reverse were cancelled only by orange postal barcoding. Owing to the card’s generally great condition, we are bending our grading standards and calling it Grade: 2
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Railway Station, Taichung (Taiwan)
Mailed with two stamps, and address label affixed. Postal battering, but minor. Grade: 3
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Moscow, First Metro Bridge over Moscow River
The caption on the reverse of this card mailed in 2011 is in six languages, of which the English reads: First metro bridge over Moscow-river. 1937. The photo is newer than that, though. One stamp, nearly full Moscow postmark. Grade: 1
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Taiwan
Mailed in 2011 with stamp and affixed trilingual airmail sticker. There’s a long caption on the reverse, but all in Chinese. Grade: 2
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Kuala Lumpur Railway Station (Malaysia)
This 4-3/4″ x 6-3/4″ card has different views of Kuala Lumpur on the front, including the old (1910) Railway Station, but the reverse is full of stickers, labels, two “train” stamps, and message. Mailed in 2011. Grade: 3
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Insel Rugen, Rasender Roland (Germany)
Mailed in 2011 with stamp, full postmark, and Luftpost, this card measures 4″ x 7-1/8″. Grade: 1
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Almelo, train station (Netherlands)
Perhaps not the most famous train station in the world, but a nice, representative card nonetheless. Stamp and Zwolle postmark. Grade: 1
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Skagway, Steam Engine 73 to White Pass Summit (Alaska)
Mailed in 2011 with Portland, OR postmark (readable) and two different stamps. Grade: 2
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Taiwan Highspeed Rail 700T
Very nice, clean card mailed in 2011 with two different stamps and clear Taipei postmark, along with a tiny sticker of the Taiwan flag. Grade: 2
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Going away … (Russia)
The title of this postcard is its full caption. Mailed in 2011, four different stamps, two large and full postmarks. Grade: 1
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Terveisia Espoosta (Greetings from Espoo, Finland)
Many of you probably know of various translation services available online. The one from Google is easy to use, and includes a “listen” function. We feel like moving to Finland just so we can hear this phrase repeated over and over. Wonderful! Like the card, mailed though with no postmark, so we must assign it as Grade: 3
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Railroad sign on brick wall, Wylie (Texas)
Full explanation of who and what Wylie is appears on the back of this card mailed in 2011 with three stamps and much of the postmark. Abrasion on lower right front corner. Grade: 3
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Class K steam locomotive (Russia)
The caption on the reverse of this card, mailed in 2011 with four stamps and full, large postmark, occupies nearly all of the message space. Too bad it’s only in Russian, but there are ways to get around that. The caption is chock full of statistics. Grade: 1
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Freight train coming out of the Horseshoe Tunnel near Scenic, on the Great Northern R.R., Wash.
This card can fit into so many categories. It was mailed in 1915, with stamp and Seattle full postmark. Little bit stained and roughly handled, but very specific and very good of kind. Grade: 3
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Howrah Station, Calcutta
Unused, unattributed card. The left edge is perforated, meaning it had once been part of a set. Grade: 1
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Broad Street Station P.R.R. (Philadelphia, USA)
Unused Art Post Card Co. (Philadelphia) card 217, really old. Grade: 2
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Taieri Gorge Railway (New Zealand)
Mailed in 2011 with “colourful” All Blacks stamp and blue Par Avion label affixed. No distinct postmark. Grade: 2
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Nederlanse Spoorwegen 1956
Photo from 1956 of this railway car, but the card is dated 1994 and was mailed in 2011 with three stamps and indistinct postmark. Grade: 1
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C.P.R. Windsor Station, Montreal
In 1916, “A” wrote that (s)he had had a lovely day. Stamp and postmark are there, along with more postmark transfer on the front. Grade: 3
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Incline Railway, Montreal
Unused Valentine & Sons card 100091, with the reverse heavily faded and somewhat stained. Minor abrasion. Grade: 4
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NS, Netherlands national train company
Mailed in 2011 with “Priority” stamp and postmark. Grade: 2
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Amsterdam, Central Station (Netherlands)
A nice, compact (about 4-5/8″ square), colourful little card showing a variety of scenes in one photo. Mailed in 2011 with stamp and bilingual blue Priority label affixed. Grade: 1
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Schmalspurdampflokomotive 99 1715 and more (Germany)
The “more” in this case includes two other vehicles, VT 137 322 and Omnibus Saurer N2C. Card has stamp and postmark, and two additional stickers. Grade: 4
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Canadian Pacific Railway Offices, Montreal
In 1908, Pansy wrote her long and surprising message to Effie. The card, its stamp and postmark survive–creased and with the date written on the front, but waiting for railway enthusiasts nonetheless. Grade: 4
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The Red Caboose Motel & Restaurant, Strasburg (Pennsylvania)
We would love to see this in person but the postcard is as close as we are going to get. The card was mailed in 2011 with three stamps (one “Forever” stamp is uncancelled) and address label affixed. Grade: 3
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Sahkoveturi Sr2 3214 (Finland)
Non-Finnish-speakers may find the caption daunting (Suomen Rautatiemuseo Hyvinkaa, Sahkoveturi Sr2 3214, Valmistaja ABB/SLM/Transtech, 1997) and we know this card to have come from the Finnish Railway Museum. Actually we have three of them. Two are in identical conditions: one was mailed in 2011 with stamp and Priority label, but no postmark, and the other in 2012 (Grades: 3, $6) and the other in 2011 with stamp and full postmark (Grade: 1, $8).
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Paikallisliikenneveturi #489 sarjaa Vk3 “lita” (Finland)
Non-Finnish-speakers may find the caption even more daunting than the previous card, but this one also comes from the Finnish Railway Museum. It was mailed in 2011 with stamp and full postmark. Grade: 1
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Luzern-Stans-Engelberg Bahn (Switzerland)
This postcard of a mountain train from the central Swiss Alps is in great condition, mailed in 2011 with stamp and se-tenant Priority label, and full but faint postmark. Grade: 1