Basically each of these cards says "dude, can you hear me now?" A fad of the 1960's and a way for nerds and freedom fighters alike to chat around the world before the web, these cards were sent by participating amateur ham radio operators to confirm reception and are now collected for their graphics, historical content and such. I cribbed the following from Wiki, you can read ALL about them here. "QSL cards are a ham radio operator's calling card and are frequently an expression of individual creativity — from a photo of the operator at his station to original artwork, images of the operator's home town or surrounding countryside, etc. They are frequently created with a good dose of individual pride. Consequently, the collecting of QSL cards of especially interesting designs has become an add-on hobby to the simple gathering of printed documentation of a ham's communications over the course of his or her radio career"
Group of QSL cards 1961-1962 Collection Jim Linderman
OMG, these are so awesome! I had never heard of these QSL cards before. They rock. Stuff like that is just so cool.
ReplyDeleteMe neither, until not long ago. I've learned there is always something goofy in the next bin.
ReplyDeleteThanks for following and taking the time to write!
While these are lovely, as QSL cards go, they're fairly dull. At least if you're the sort of guy who's less excited by a stylish, professional-looking postcard than by a hectographically reproduced drawing of an anthropomorphic sparkplug driving a big rig with Minnie Mouse in the passenger seat. I've got maybe 60-80 of them, selected mostly for: (a) copyright infringement, (b)crudity of execution, or (c) extreme eccentricity. And plenty of them have it all at the same time! I also have a handful of the more professional ones, which could be ordered with your call letters from specialist printers, but they're just not quite the same. I've intended for a long time to either throw some up on Flickr or actually start a blog for them, but frankly, I'm wildly overbooked as it is. Someday, maybe.
ReplyDeleteYes, I've seen some quite beautiful and startling ones, but as i'm most certainly NOT a collector, the specialization you have centered on is understandable, but not my thing. They are fascinating...anything done individually, eccentrically and creatively is great, especially these days, and these early pioneers were interesting indeed. THANKS for for taking the time to comment, and if you'd like me to post some of your images, let me know! Jim
ReplyDeletei have a whole pile of these cards from around the world, are they worth anything to anyone?
ReplyDeletewell u wont beleive me when i tell u. i was working in mount dora,fl. someone was cleaning out there garage and onthe side of the road. i went thru the debris and found many of these QSL cards. i just kept them for future use. i never dream that i would find them on here. i have american,africa,yugoslavia, ussr,romania,canada,new zealand,etc. im trying to determine there value. the oldest goes back to 1963 to 1976. i even have letters,pictures of men and woman on ham radios. can u beleive it. im going to put the most interesting ones on craigslist for sale. i have QSL cards from naval carriers. i may have a small fortune. what ever i have i will sell. i dont need them. i need the money honey and thats all. thank for letting me post. if ur interested u can email me: ccpt1996dts@yahoo.com
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