Old postcards from September 1

Postcards for September 1st are more than just greetings for the Day of Knowledge. They are true artifacts of school history, preserving the moods, visuals, and symbols of 20th-century educational culture. Especially valuable are vintage September 1st postcards, which capture the spirit of Soviet and post-Soviet childhood.

In the 1950s–1980s, retro postcards for the Day of Knowledge often featured smiling first-graders, pioneers with bouquets, teachers, school assemblies, and decorated classrooms. These illustrations commonly included idealized scenes with symbolic elements: books, bells, globes, and slogans like “Happy Knowledge Day!” or “Onward to Learning!”

One such postcard, for example, shows a girl with large white bows walking to school with flowers, accompanied by her illustrated friends: a rabbit in a shirt and a bear with a school bag. All of them carry autumn bouquets — a warm and festive scene from Soviet childhood.

Soviet-era September 1st postcards are of interest to collectors due to their style and details: publisher marks, typography, handwritten messages, and color palettes. These are more than images — they’re memories of the first school bell, uniforms, and a hopeful start.

Today, such postcards inspire designers, exhibition curators, teachers, and those who collect school memorabilia. They are used in educational projects, nostalgic collections, and museum displays.

Who is this category for? Collectors, education historians, graphic design enthusiasts, and everyone who remembers the scent of autumn asters, their first schoolbag, and the sound of the September 1st bell.