Mary Pringle's scrapbook.

Finished a big project a couple of days ago: scanning and uploading the cards that once resided in Mary Pringle's gorgeous 1880s scrapbook. I took them out of the book about a year or so ago because I was concerned about them deteriorating in the acidic Victorian paper. They are now scanned and uploaded to the Internet and the originals are stored in acid-free sheet protectors, so I can breathe a bit easier.

You can check out the fascinating cards here. Be sure to take advantage of the magnifying feature. Most of them really are in fabulous shape for being 125 years old. Many famous Victorian card-makers - including De La Rue Co., Raphael Tuck & Sons, and S. Hildesheimer & Co. - are represented in the collection.