So I have found a bit more out about this card since its original insertion. La Ville de Paris may indeed translate as the town of Paris, but it was some kind of department store, with two addresses, either 170 or 174 Rue Montmartre, but the latter says that was the former Hotel des Messageries Francaises, which is a kind of link to our theme as a Messagerie is either a courier or shipping service.
The text on our card offers 1. storage of your shopping, 2. fabric samples, 3. different catalogues. The idea of catalogues have now been superseded by the internet, which I do not find so interesting, for you cannot look at leisure, and no longer can the joys of thumbing through a seed catalogue and makng notes on every page occupy an entire winter.
On another card of theirs, there is a list of their wares, namely "Modes et Coiffures, Rubans, Articles de Paris, Fleurs et Plumes, Mercerie, Passementerie, Ganterie. Corsets, Parfumerie". Now as this translates to Fashion and Hairstylings, Ribbons, Parisian Goods, Flowers and Feathers, Haberdashery, Trimmings, Gloves. Corsets, Perfumery, its pretty obvious that it was a department store more for ladies than for men.
By the way, the card was printed by Hutinet.
This set seems to be world stamps, as there are reproductions of several postage stamps on each, and in the larger box a child dressed in the costume of the country which issued those stamps. In addition the top cartouche, above the child, contains the word, in that country, for postage. So this one we show today is the United States, but we know of the following, and maybe you can add even more....
- Correos - Espana
- HOYTOBR - Mapka (Russia)
- KK Poste - Tempel ? (the stamps are in Kreuzer, so possibly Austro-Hungary?)
- Postage - England
- Poste - Francaise
- Poste - Italiane
- United States