Today in Postal History

   

Portugal to Japan
April 16, 1907

This picture postcard was sent from Lisbon to Kobe.

There are two Lisbon CDS on the stamps on the picture side.
There are two receiving marks on the message side from Kobe.
The first is in English with a date of May 21.
There is also a second with a Japanese 40 for the
year date of the reign of the then-current emperor.
The emperor was the Meiija emperor so this was the 40th year of his reign.
His longevity gave rise to the term "Meiija-Era" to describe items
characteristic of the reign similarly to Western terms like "Victorian Era."*

There is also an interesting pencilled translation
of the address into Japanese characters.

The cover is franked with two light green 10 Reis
King Carlos of the 1895-1905 series (Scott 112).

The picture shows women making good use of a municipal laundry in Lisbon.
It was probably a social event as well as a chore.

*Thanks to David Frick for his suggestion to add this
interesting piece of information regarding the Meiija-Era.