Date of use : 1903 Spain

1903 Postcard to Photographer Bougault

This postcard was sent from Tarragona, Spain, on November 27, 1903, to Toulon, France, and arrived three days later on November 30, 1903. The recipient was French photographer Alexandre Bougault (1851–1911).

Bougault participated in the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, and after the war, he turned to photography. In 1893, he established his own studio in Toulon at 3 Place de la Liberté, where he worked on various photographic projects for L'Illustration magazine and the French Navy. His work made significant contributions to the visual memory of the era.

Around 1907, he moved his studio to Biskra, Algeria, where he produced one of the earliest photographic reports documenting the region's natural landscapes, daily life, and local culture. Bougault passed away on September 4, 1911. After his death, his son continued the work, and the family studio remained active until 1940.

Bougault and his son produced high-quality postcards and album prints using the phototypie (collotype) process—a halftone-free printing technique using bichromated gelatin on a glass surface. These postcards were generally printed by Bergeret & Cie in Nancy or by the Lévy brothers in Paris. Bougault's photographs often depicted French naval ships, harbor scenes, and moments from the North African campaigns. Today, many of these images are preserved in institutional collections, especially in the catalog of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF).

On the reverse side of the postcard, there is a short message written in Spanish by a woman named Josefa Tayol. The message reads:

Dear Sir,

I kindly ask you to confirm the receipt of my registered letter. I am surprised that you did not receive the postcards. Please let me know whether you received them.

With sincere regards,

Josefa Tayol

Tarragona, November 27, 1903

This brief correspondence not only reflects the communication between two individuals but also illustrates the speed of postal services of the time, the professional network among photographers, and the widespread use of the phototypie printing technique.

Record Information

Title: 1903 Postcard to Photographer Bougault

Category: Photographic History / Postal History

Subcategory: French Photography / International Correspondence

Country: Spain (Origin) / France (Destination)

City: Tarragona → Toulon

Date of use: 27 November 1903 (sent) – 30 November 1903 (arrival)

Sender: Josefa Tayol, Tarragona, Spain

Recipient: Alexandre Bougault (1851-1911), Phototypie & Photographie, 3 Place de la Liberté, Toulon, France

Photographer: Alexandre Bougault (Franco-Prussian War veteran, photographer for L'Illustration and French Navy, moved to Biskra, Algeria c.1907, studio active until 1940)

Printing Technique: Phototypie (collotype) – halftone-free process using bichromated gelatin on glass

Printers: Bergeret & Cie, Nancy; Lévy brothers, Paris

Subjects: French naval ships, harbor scenes, North African campaigns, Algerian landscapes and daily life

Archival Holdings: Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF)

Object Type: International postcard / personal correspondence

Postal Route: Tarragona → Toulon (3-day delivery)

Language: Spanish

Material: Printed card stock with handwritten message

Dimensions: Standard postcard format

Collection Theme: French naval photography, phototypie printing, Mediterranean photographic networks, Franco-Spanish correspondence

Archival Significance: This 1903 postcard documents the professional network surrounding Alexandre Bougault, a French photographer whose career spanned from the Franco-Prussian War to North Africa. Bougault's work for L'Illustration and the French Navy produced a significant visual record of naval operations and Mediterranean life, now preserved at the BnF. His adoption of the phototypie (collotype) process, printed by Bergeret & Cie and the Lévy brothers, enabled high-quality reproduction of his images as postcards and album prints. The three-day delivery from Tarragona to Toulon illustrates the efficiency of early 20th-century postal services. Josefa Tayol's inquiry about undelivered postcards provides a glimpse into the practical concerns of photographic commerce. This item is a primary source for understanding the intersection of photography, publishing, and personal correspondence in the early 1900s, and the networks that connected photographers across the Mediterranean.

Research Note:

This article is based on historical research and independent analysis of the material in the author's collection. The text has been prepared as an original interpretative study and does not reproduce copyrighted material.

This item is documented as part of the Photography in Postal History research project.
For research context, see the Research Methodology.
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