30 Funny Vintage French Postcards Show Daily Life Around Box-Beds From 100 Years Ago

Pictures of comic scenes staged around Britanny’s most famous furniture. The double-decker beds (double lit clos, lit à l’étage etc.) are doubly amusing with the right humorous caption. There are straightforward photographs too, showing off traditional Breton folk costumes as well as the beds.

The postcards probably appealed to city slickers from Paris taking the sea air in Brittany, as well as to tourists from further afield. Brittany’s cultural heritage is quite distinct from the rest of France, so a cute picture of the carved box beds plus wooden clogs (sabots) and local characters in Breton dress could be just the thing to send to the folks back home. There seems to be a hint of “Aren’t these rustic hicks funny?” but it’s hard to be sure how it would have seemed at the time. In any case, the photographs give a good impression of the amazing furniture.

Every box bed had its combination bench-chest (banc-coffre or banc-tossel) to help with climbing in. (And with storing linen.) To get up and down, some postcard characters perched a stool precariously on the chest, some asked for a ladder, and others used a convenient shoulder.

Within Brittany, there were regional differences in the design of lits clos. Some were completely enclosed with full doors, except perhaps for decorative pierced carving to let air circulate. Other beds were only partly surrounded by wooden panelling, and had a curtained opening. Fixed panels and sliding doors could match perfectly. The space behind the bench-chest might be empty, or covered with a simple plank. Side panels were generally plain, hidden by other furniture close by.

As well as elaborate carving on flat surfaces, many beds featured ornamental balusters. A balustrade ran all the way along the top of some beds. Here, check out these funny vintage postcards from more than 100 years ago:

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31 Lovely Photos That Capture 'Vintage Brides From Inside of the Cars'

An interesting set of lovely photos that capture beautiful brides from inside of the cars.

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33 Fascinating Photos That Capture Everyday Life of Dallas in the 1970s

Here is a collection of 33 fascinating photos that shows everyday life of Dallas in the 1970s.

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Girls in bathing suits, somewhere in the United States, ca. 1930s

Here Are 10 Notorious Female Outlaws From the Wild West

Perhaps no other time in America's history is as steeped in myth, legend, and adventure as the pioneering age of the "Wild West." Outlaws, lawmen, cowboys, American Indians, miners, ranchers, and more than a few "ladies of ill repute" emerged in this era, from 1865 to 190­0.

Any female settler in the West was a heroine in her own right, but listed here are a few of the more famous women of this intriguing period.

1. Pearl Hart

Born in Lindsay, Canada in 1871, Hart attended an exclusive school. However, she enjoyed adventuring more than school work. At age seventeen, Pearl eloped to Chicago with gambler, Frederick Hart. But, Frederick was abusive and Hart left him at age Twenty-two. She made her way to Arizona where she met miner, Joe Boot. When Boot couldn’t make enough dough from mining, the lovers turned to robbery. They developed a routine where Hart would lure a man into her room, and, once through the door, Boot would whack the unsuspecting gentleman on the head and rob him. However, this play was risky and the couple were almost caught on several occasions. In 1899, Hart developed a plan to rob a stagecoach. More money, less risk.

Hart cut her hair and dressed as a man. Boot held up the driver, while Hart took over $400 from the passengers. After giving a little back to ensure the victims had enough money for food and a hotel, Hart and Boot rode gallantly away into the sunset, only to get lost in the desert. After several days of wandering, they desperately needed sleep, but when they woke the sheriff and his posse had found them. They were caught a mere three miles from the scene of the crime. It was while she was being tried for her crimes that Hart is famous for saying this feminist phrase, "I shall not consent to be tried under a law in which my sex had no voice in making." Unfortunately, the judge didn't care and Hart was tried and convicted anyway.

Being the second woman to rob a stage coach and the first one not to die while doing it, Hart instantly became the most famous woman in Arizona. Journalists came from all over to interview Hart and photograph her with her gun. Hart received a pardon after 18 months. The official reason was that the penitentiary did not have accommodations for women, although rumor had it that Hart was pregnant and the judge didn't want to have to explain how that happened. Hart later had a brief stint in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, but lived the rest of her life low key.


2. Laura Bullion

Bullion was born into a life of crime. Her father was a bank robber, and Bullion, after spending her teenage years as a prostitute, joined the Wild Bunch Gang and became known at the “Rose of the Wild Bunch”. Bullion sold stolen goods and made connections that kept the bunch in steady supply of horses. She was romantically involved with several members of the gang, on and off. On certain occasions she dressed as a man and joined the rest of the gang in train robberies. In 1901, she was arrested with $8,500 worth of stolen banknotes in her possession. When she was released from prison, Bullion retired from her life of crime and became an interior designer in Memphis, Tennessee. Bullion died of heart disease in 1961. Her gravestone is embossed with a rose and thorny vines and reads “The Thorny Rose.” Bullion was the last surviving member of The Wild Bunch Gang.


3. Madam Vestal

Born and raised on a wealthy southern plantation, Belle Siddons was the definition of a Southern beauty. During the Civil War, she employed her good looks and became a confederate spy at twenty-five. She was caught and imprisoned, but pardoned after four months. She later married a gambling man who taught her to play cards. Finding that she was naturally good at the game, Belle became famous as a dealer of the game 21. When her husband died, Siddons followed the gold rush and set up shop in South Dakota. As owner of her own dance hall, bar, and gambling establishment, Siddons changed her name to Madame Vestal. It was in her establishment that she met and fell in love with stage coach robber, Archie McLaughlin. Once again, Siddons used her skills and beauty to become a spy and retract information from stagecoach drivers which she then passed on to her lover. Unfortunately, Siddons’ confidence got the best of her and one night she let slip that there was going to be a robbery. McLaughlin was caught, tried and hung, and Siddons became a wandering drunk who would eventually die alone in jail.


4. Rose Dunn

Born in Oklahoma in 1879, Dunn became an outlaw when she fell in love with George Newcomb, a member of the Doolin Gang. Dunn participated in the gang by providing them with ammunition and supplies when members could not go to town. Once, Dunn saved Newcomb when he was wounded by U.S. Marshals. She dodged open fire and held off the Marshals with her own rifle until he could get to safety. Dunn’s brothers, who were bounty hunters, eventually turned Newcomb in and Dunn settled down with a politician.


5. Sally Scull

Sarah Jane Newman was born tough. Born in 1817 to one of the first families to settle in Austin territory, Scull grew up having to defend her family’s land from constant attack. Her mother, Rachel Newman, once cut off the toes of a Comanche Indian who was trying to get through their front door. Inheriting her mother’s spirit, Scull became notorious as a male-dressing, gun-slinging, horse-trading woman. Twice a year she would make the treacherous trip alone to Mexico and come back with horses she probably stole, but no proof could be found. She’s also rumored to have killed two of her five husbands.

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Decoding Jackie O's Signature Style: Ways Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Influenced Fashion in the 1960s and Early 1970s

When it came to fashion, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was a world-class acquisitor. In her first year in the White House, she spent $45,446 more on clothing and baubles than the $100,000 her husband earned as president.

During her years as Mrs. Onassis, she'd slip into Madison Avenue boutiques to snap up her signature turtlenecks, usually one in every color. The purse slung over her shoulder was Hermes, the bangle on her wrist Schlumberger. But the style was all her own. And as the 1980 song by Human Sexual Response went, women hungered to be more like the elegant pop-art princess: "I want to be Jackie Onassis/I want to wear a pair of dark sunglasses/I want to be Jackie Onassis, oh yeah, oh yeah."

Designers didn't start out to do a paean to Jackie, but it came out that way. After years of fashion deconstruction, it was time to segue back to more structure -- which defined the 1960s and early '70s. Here, below is a breakdown of the elements that defined Jackie's signature style.

1. Pillbox Hats

U.S. First Lady Jackie Kennedy on an official visit to Paris in 1961. (RDA)

Jackie started more than a few trends during her first year in the White House, including popularizing the pillbox hat. Many of her stylish chapeaus, which she often wore in different colors, were designed for her by Halston. She famously wore a pink suit and matching pillbox hat on the day her husband was assassinated.


2. Oversize Sunglasses

Jackie Onassis on the streets of New York City on Oct. 7, 1971. (Ron Galella—WireImage/Getty Images)

Jackie's signature shades were both stylish and functional. She has been quoted saying she liked the opportunity they gave her to watch people and that she kept multiple pairs of sunglasses in a basket by her front door.


3. Headscarves

Jackie Onassis walks through a busy street in Capri, Italy, in the early 1970s. (Hulton Archive—Getty Images)

Jackie had an ability to make even the most casual outfits look chic, and often paired headscarves with giant sunglasses when she was outdoors.


4. Perfectly Styled Hair

Jackie Kennedy sits in the living room of her Washington, D.C., residence, March 27, 1960 during her husband's campaign. (AP)

Though her hairstyle evolved over the years, Jackie's voluminous coif was an integral part of her signature lookl. Her iconic bouffant was created by Kenneth Battelle, the famed hairdresser to the stars who also styled Marilyn Monroe.


5. Elbow Length Gloves

U.S. First Lady Jackie Kennedy attends a luncheon with French President Charles DeGaulle (right) on June 2, 1961 in Washington, D.C. (Paul Schutzer—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)

Gloves were another signature accessory for Jackie for both day and night. She favored white elbow length gloves at formal evening events, which were often commissioned by LaCrasia Gloves in New York City's famed garment district.

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31 Historical Photos of the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921)

The Irish War of Independence or Anglo-Irish War or the Tan War was a guerrilla war fought from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the Army of the Irish Republic) and the British Security Forces in Ireland. It was an escalation of the Irish revolutionary period into armed conflict.

A truce was agreed in July 1921. In December 1921, the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed, effectively ending British rule in Ireland, excepting the Six Counties: Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Derry/Londonderry, Tyrone.

Group of women activists holding protest posters and an American flag, being directed by policemen, at an unidentified location, December 1920

Following the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in December 1921, there was a steady evacuation of British soldiers from Ireland during 1922.

A historical photo set from National Library of Ireland that documented emotional moments of the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921).

 The car in which Lord French was ambushed, sergeant pointing out bullet hole, Dublin, December 1919

A fraction of the thousands of people flocking each day to visit and pray at 'bleeding' statues set up in a yard beside T. Dwan's newsagents, Main Street, Templemore, Tipperary, August 1920

Aeroplane on roof at Barrack Street, Waterford, November 1920

Dublin and Cork fire brigade appliances, December 1920

Friends of the victims and members of the military outside Jervis Street Hospital during the military enquiry into the Bloody Sunday shootings at Croke Park, 21 November 1920

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