In 1898 TUCK's first numbered series of postcards was printed, a set of 12 lithographed vignette views of London. They were numbered 1 to 12 with the "Tower of London" having the distinction of being the #1 postcard. I have a number 4 in this series.

 

The TUCK Company entered the American postcard market in 1900 and maintained an office in New York. American artists designed the postcards and they were printed in Germany and England and returned to the U.S. for sale. Most records of the TUCK history were destroyed during the bombing blitz of London during World War II, including the original paintings the postcards were produced from.

 

TUCK postcards are easy to identify with their destinctive logo as "ART PUBLISHERS TO THEIR MAJESTIES THE KING AND QUEEN".

 

For more about TUCK postcards and their history,

we recommend the following reference books;

 

The American Postcard Guide to TUCK, Sally S. Carver, 1976
Collector's Guide to Raphael Tuck & Sons by Blair & Margaret Whitton, 1991
The Picture Postcards of Raphael Tuck & Sons by J.H.D. Smith (Ed.), 2000