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M Mint perfect, looks brand new, very rare in a vintage postcard
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NM Near Mint extremely light aging if any. Crisp corners. Tiny corner bumps might be seen under magnifier
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EX Excellent no bends or creases. A clean fresh card that has some very minor corner wear
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VG Very Good corners may be a bit rounded. May have a crease that doesn’t detract from appearance
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G Good corners may be blunt or rounded with one or more bends or creases on the card
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FR Fair creases and bends more pronounced, corners more rounded, some soiling
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PR Poor excess soil, stained, heavy creases. Items described as such are generally not returnable
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Abbreviations Sometimes Used With Postcards, and Dates That Various Types of Postcards Were Published:
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P/L - Pre-Linen, before 1930
UDB - Undivided Back Pre-Linen, 1901-1907
DB - Divided Back Pre-Linen, 1907-1915
WB - White Border Pre-Linen, 1915-1930
L - Linen, 1930-1945
Cont Chrome - Continental Chrome, 1945 to modern (SIZE 4"X6")
b/w - black and white
mono - monochrome
cof - cancel on face
sfc/wr - surface wear
crs - crease/s
crn/cr - corner crease
wof - writing on face (by law, any message had to be written on the face during the Undivided Back period and earlier)
wob - writing on back, usually the address & message
emb - embossed
Fotofolio Cards - early 70's to 80's
lt - light
m/t - margin tear
o/w - otherwise
p/ or pub - publisher
pm - postmarked
rd - round
R/P or RPPC - Real Photo
s/ or sgn - artist signed
s/m - stamp missing
u - used
unu - unused
( ) - a number inside the parentheses indicates the quantity of cards in a multiple-card lot
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How to Identify & Determine the Approximate Age of Real Photo Postcards:
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There is some confusion on what "Real Photo" postcards are and how to identify them. Novice and beginning collectors often think that all “shiny” postcards are “real photo” postcards, but that’s just not true. Real Photo postcards are photographs that are produced by actually developing them onto photographic paper the size and weight of postcards, usually with a postcard back (with a stamp box). There are many postcards that reproduce photos by various printing methods that are NOT "real photos" ... these use the same printing methods that are used when photos are reproduced in magazines and newspapers. Chrome cards are often mistaken for RPPCs by novice collectors because of their shiny surfaces.
The best way to tell the difference is to look at the postcard with a fairly strong magnifying glass or loupe. We use a 12x magnifier for this purpose. If the photo is merely printed onto cardstock, you will see that it is made up of a lot of little dots, the same as a photo that’s printed in a newspaper. A "real photo" postcard is made up of solid shades of gray, ranging from black to white, with no dots.
Most real photo postcards have identifying marks on the back, usually in the stampbox corner, that identify the manufacturer of the photographic paper. You can approximate the age of the Real Photo by knowing when the paper manufacturer was in business.
Real Photo Postcard Dating Guide Based on Paper Type:
AGFA/ANSCO 1930-1940s
ANSCO 1940-1960 2 Stars at top & bottom
ARGO 1905-1920
ARTURA 1910-1924
AZO 1926-1940s Squares in corners
AZO 1904-1918 4 triangles pointed up
AZO 1918-1930 Triangles 2 up, 2 down
AZO 1907-1909 DIAMONDS in corners
AZO 1922-1926 Empty Corners
CYKO 1904-1920s
DEFENDER 1910-1920 Diamond above & below
DEFENDER 1920-1940 Diamond inside
Devolite Peerless 1950-now
DOPS 1925-1942
EKC 1939-1950
EKKP 1904-1950
EKO 1942-1970
KODAK 1950-NOW
KRUXO 1907-1920s
KRUXO 1910-1920s Xs in corners
NOKO 1907-1920s
PMO 1907-1915
SAILBOAT 1905-1908 Sailboat in circle
SOLIO 1903-1920s Diamonds in corners
VELOX 1907-1914 Diamonds in corners
VELOX 1901-1914 Squares in corners
VELOX 1909-1914 Triangles: 4 pointed Up
VITAVA 1925-1934
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