This shows a ring, which most ladies seem to think is the grandest prize of all. Not so sure that applies to me, but then I am more of a free spirit, and do not like the idea of marriage very much, for friendship is so much better, and can last forever.
The curious thing about this card is that the reverse advertises another set - "Histoire Naturelle (or Natural History)... 96 photographies d`animaux.." This was comprised of sixteen sets, each having six subjects. Now it appears that if you forwarded twelve chromos and ten centimes in stamps, you would get either a whole set, or part of a set, of the animal cards. There was also a special album, for fifty centimes in stamps. Now I just have to find the Natural History set and see if I am right!
All the cards in this set have an inset which shows an item made of precious stones (or Pierres Precieuses), which is captioned with the name of the stone, which comes first in our listing, and then its virtues, or what is is supposed to guard against or heal. The main part of he card is a large cartoon which relates to that meaning. So in our case we have an emerald, as a ring, which is a brilliant yellow colour, and its virtues or qualities are that it gives inspiration and a talent which is not always understood - hence the cartoon is a man serenading where he thinks his lover lives, but it appears they have given him the wrong address.
As the cards are unnumbered, we have a list, or the starting of one, and many thanks to all who have already helped to add to it, as well as to those who will email me with more in the future. And do note that there is sometimes more than one card for the precious stones, showing another item made of that material. We found this out the hard way, after most of this list had been supplied, so I had to get back to those and ask for more info.
So far, we have :
- Ambre (Amber) - necklace
resine fossile jaune citron - chasse la maladie [people outside a pharmacy] - Chrysolithe (peridot) - a shield shaped stick pin top -
couleur jaune verdatre - fait retrouver les objets perdus {a man returning a wallet] - Corail Noir (black coral - a ring -
confiance dans sa force [a fairground strong man] - Corail Rose [pink coral] - a necklace with a nose shaped stone
aide a la dentition des enfants [three woman and a baby] - Corail Rose [pink coral] - a necklace with a pearl shaped stone
innocence, jeunesse, enfance [group of girls one skipping] - Emeraude [emerald] - a ring
brillante couleur verte - inspiration, talent incompris [a serenading man] - Hydrophane (opal) - hat or stick pin top -
opaque, couleur grisatre, transparente dans l`eau - tranquillitie, patience [fishing] - Jade - a bowl -
translucide, plusieres nuances - fermete impetoyable, autorite [gendarmes and a tramp] - Jais (jet) - a buckle -
couleur noir, brillant - coeur en paine [a man watching a couple, sadly] - Jais (jet) - a necklace -
couleur noir, brillant - protege contre les voleurs [thieves on a roof] - Lapis Lazuli - a buckle ring -
bleu de ciel ,opaque - gouts artistiques [an art gallery] - Oeil de Lion, agate oeillee (Lion`s Eye?) - a stick pin top -
protege contre brigands [fighting off robbers] - Sarde (sardonyx) - a pendant -
variete d`agate, couleur rouge translucide prosperite des affairs [a shop cashier] - Topaze (topaz) - a brooch -
brilliante couleur jaune d`or - indique ou sont caches les tresors [finding a pot of gold]