Any idea of the possible year/month/date of this typhoon event? | Gwulo: Old Hong Kong

Any idea of the possible year/month/date of this typhoon event?

Any idea of the possible year/month/date of this typhoon event?
Submitted by cmshun
Tags: 
typhoon

I bought this postcard from a local dealer and would like to know which typhoon it was (e.g. 1906, 1923, 1937 etc)?  Seems that quite a number of this postcard are still available in the market.

Thanks a lot!

CM Shun

Date picture taken (may be approximate): 
Wednesday, September 19, 1906
Gallery: 
1906 Typhoon
Connections: 
  • Any idea of the possible year/month/date of this typhoon event? shows Event 1906 Typhoon
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Comments

Submitted by moddsey on Sun, 2013-04-28 06:12.

I have dated mine to the  1900s. But there is no evidence to indicate when and where it was taken. It may not be Hong Kong.

Submitted by David on Sun, 2013-04-28 19:30.

If you look through the galleries, you'll see there were lots of these hand-coloured postcards in the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s, but they look to have gone out of fashion by the 1930s. If you're seeing this postcard appear regularly, hopefully you'll see a used one with a stamp & postmark, that will give us a better idea of its date.

Regards, David

Submitted by cmshun on Sun, 2013-04-28 20:57.

Thanks David for the hints.  Mine was a used one, but unfortunately it was not mailed and no date was indicated.

Regards, CM

Submitted by marlowe on Mon, 2013-04-29 07:31.

A quick google search brought this up. It seems to look like a group usually dated 1910's, although it is common to see the same postcard on sale for 10-20 years, which has caught me out in the past ;-)

Many of these seem to be unposted, thich contradicts the seller's comment below.

AN OLD 1917-1919 POSTCARD  OF HONGKONG, THIS ONE IS SHOWING, A TREE UPROOTED BY TYPHOON, NEAR CHINESE HOUSE,  THAT IS HOW IT READS AT THE BOTTOM  OF THE POSTCARD, ALONG WITH THE NUMBER 20352.

IT IS IN NEAR MINT CONDITION, NO WRITING ON THE BACK. IT WAS SENT HOME  BY A SOLDIER WHO WAS STATIONED THERE 1917-1919, 

THIS POSTCARD WAS PUBLISHED BY, LAU PING KEE, WHOLESALE & RETAIL POSTCARDS AND USED POSTAGE STAMPS ETC. 10 QUEENS ROAD CENTRAL HONGKONG.

THE POSTCARDS WERE SENT HOME TO ENGLAND PROBABLY WITH OTHERS. NO MESSAGE ON THIS ONE WHICH IS UNUSUAL.

Submitted by cmshun on Mon, 2013-04-29 14:42.

Thanks Marlowe.  If the postcard was indeed bought in 1917-1919 and assuming that it could be available for sale 10-20 years, the typhoons in 1906 (killing more than 10,000) or 1908 (sinking the steamer Ying King killing more than 400) could be plausible.

CM

Submitted by moddsey on Mon, 2013-04-29 16:22.
Besides the Chinese name on the back of the postcard, there is also a European name on similar postcards sold in Kowloon. But no address is given. Time permitting, will advise of findings.

Submitted by David on Mon, 2013-04-29 20:21.

Marlowe, that's a good find. I wonder if it was originally bought by one of the Middlesex men: http://gwulo.com/node/9084 ?

The "unposted / sent home" probably means they were enclosed in a letter or parcel that was sent home, so didn't get a stanp or postmark.

Regards, David

Submitted by marlowe on Mon, 2013-04-29 20:37.

looking again, I found one with writing on the back 

  http://www.stamps-auction.com/hong-kong-china-old-postcard-a-tree-uprooted-by-typhoon-for-sale-105677

which says 1906, so the postcard was on sale until 1917 at least ;-)

Alun

Submitted by cmshun on Mon, 2013-04-29 20:50.

Dear Alun,

Many thanks for your excellent catch!  It is really amazing how the wiki concept works here!

Cheers, CM

Submitted by moddsey on Tue, 2013-04-30 16:26.

Alun - good find.

A few observations:

a) The Chinese publisher, Lau Ping Kee appears to be the name of a firm that also dealt in curios. Its owner was declared bankrupt in the mid-1920s.

If one googles the succeeding Serial Nos 20353 up to 20358, some scenes of Canton are shown.

b) The European publisher of the postcard was C. Piens of Kowloon, Hong Kong. From the Jury List, a Charles Piens resided in Kowloon between 1906 and 1913. He worked as a clerk and assistant in major trading companies. Not sure if it is the same Piens or how he dabbled in postcards. Other postcards printed by him are also available for sale.

1908 C. Piens Address Chop and Envelope. See here

The Stamp Collector  mentions that C Piens arrived in Hong Kong in 1900.

Submitted by cmshun on Tue, 2013-04-30 22:52.

Thanks Moddsey.  I managed to find serial numbers 20355 and 20362 on the internet, which show respectively the "water reservouir in hill district, Hongkong" (http://www.stamps-auction.com/hong-kong-old-postcard-water-reservoir-in-hill-district-for-sale-114691) and "resting point on the highest spot on the peak, Hongkong" (http://www.ebay.com/itm/China-Hongkong-Resting-Place-Peak-Unused-Very-Good-Quality-/120862187927?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c23f2a197), so I guess the serial number may not tell much about the location of the photo?

Cheers, CM

Submitted by moddsey on Tue, 2013-04-30 23:33.

I guess the only way to find out is to view the original sketch or photograph. In the meantime, I will go along with the 1906 typhoon. Having said, this is the only scene that I have viewed that shows not the harbour and the city.

Submitted by cmshun on Tue, 2013-04-30 23:58.

Thanks again.  There is yet another similar photo with its location still uncertain: http://gwulo.com/node/12472, this time for the 1923 typhoon.

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 2014-02-04 05:37.

I found an original silver gelatin print of this very photograph. It was in an album belonging to a resident of Hong Kong who captioned it thusly: "Back of Nan Yang Tobacco Co's Premises, Wanchai." The owner of this album was also in the tobacco business, which leads me to think he knew his competitors and their locations well. He dated it as being taken following the 1908 Hong Kong typhoon, the same one as destroyed the S.S. Ying King, as previously mentioned here. This photograph was likely taken 28 July 1908 or in the weeks following.

 

Submitted by moddsey on Thu, 2014-02-06 06:25.

The premises of the Canton Nan Yang Tobacco Co. Ltd was located at 119 Wanchai Road. The Company was wound up in 1908 but prior to the typhoon.

If possible, it would be nice to view the print to make a comparison with the postcard posted.

Submitted by christoph on Thu, 2014-02-06 15:23.

I have two copies of this postcard in my collection. One published by C. Piens, Kowloon. The other by: Lau Ping Kee, Wholesale and Retail Postcards and Postage Stamps Dealer, Money-Changer (Notes, Gold and Silver) 10 Queens Road Central, Hongkong. This one dates the Tyfoon to 1906.

Typhoon Postcard 1906

Submitted by moddsey on Fri, 2014-04-18 10:14.

A hand tinted photograph of the same postcard on sale on eBay also indicates the typhoon event was in 1906.