ANTARCTIC - WRENCH POSTCARD SERIES ANTARCTIC - WRENCH POSTCARD SERIES OFFICIAL "S.S. DISCOVERY" CACHET ON CARD FOR DEPARTURE FROM BRITAIN; 31st July 1901 usage of the Wrench Series 3, No.1 PPC (small faults; showing Scott & the "Discovery")
with QV 1/2d from London, having a superb strike of the encircled "ANTARCTIC/EXPDN./1901/S.S. DISCOVERY" cachet on the picture side.
Antarctic - New Zealand Postcards can form an exciting and very varied type of collection. Here are a few to illustrate this.
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I am not an expert on these - Steve McLachlan of Shades Stamps - Christchurch is way far more knowledgeable and an exhibitor, writer, and serious collector on this
topic along with NZ Ship postcards (Hopefully one day he will contribute here for others - OR display his collections in digital form as I will show and suggest in
a future article (So others may make (download or create) their own reference copies of magnificient collections others have assembled (Before they break them up
and sell them for thebig financial gains (OR their families do once they have died - which we see so often these day - eg If you look in the ANTARCTIC ALBUM
I have assembled - you will see a numbered collection 480-531 - Well this collection I saw (help mount at a couple of major NZ Exhibitions about 20+ years ago
AND really liked - Well this collection was broken up and sold in March 2006 in Australia with it going to all parts of the globe never to be seen together again
- a crying shame - They may have reprinted various postcards etc from it - I doubt if they produced a hardback book with the information and details
(as displayed in the 64-128 page Ex) Today this can be done digitally like I do in album form - then saved and distributed in a number of different
formats to other collectors. Refer to (Watch for my article on this here) Then add your collection here in those forms for others and prosperity.
(LOVE to see them saved here)
ANTARCTIC - THE WRENCH SERIES
These are just some postcards I have in my digital image library.
I know there is (And I have written about them else where and have this information also elsewhere - which when I find it - will add to this subject and these postcards)
Number of different Series unknown (But I believe they were done in series for atleast a couple of SPECIAL occassions and sold to their readers)
Information on this is required - Please contribute.
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Correct me if I am wrong - details and information is required -
again I have it somewhere in my extensive library and will add it when I locate it. Appreciate contributions on this topic/article -
send me your info to Kiwi Jeff
Below is the link to the album (which has considerable more information in it on the large image pages - click on the thumbnails to see the enlarged images and details
Wrench London SERIES
The company was established as E Wrench in 1900 at 20 Haymarket, London, and soon moved to Arthur Street, London.
The company became E Wrench Ltd in 1902 It held a large percentage of the postcard market in the early 1900s but ran into trouble through exclusively selling its own cards.
The company became Wrench Postcards in 1904 but soon ran into difficulties and closed (I have read 'in 1904' and 'in1906' from different sources). The company's problems were caused by exclusively carrying their own products in their many shops.
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Here are some of the images I have - enlarged views
Similar Series 3, No.2 PPC (fine; depicting route map and ship's decks) with a superb Expedition cachet; posted 7th Oct. 1901 to G.B. from the SS Discovery at "SIMONS TOWN" en route with C.G.H. 1d.
Similar Series 3, No.3 PPC (minor edge faults but attractive; showing men on an ice-flow and again with a superb Expedition cachet) sent on 24th Dec. 1901 from the SS Discovery at Lyttleton (the last port of call) with N.Z. 1d Universal to G.B.
Similar Series 3, No.4 PPC (trivial corner faults; depicting a polar bear & British flag) posted on 25th April 1904 at Christchurch (1d Universal) to G.B. from the SS Discovery upon her return with a mostly very fine strike of the Expedition cachet. The card was "Carried by the Discovery during her wanderings..." (for 3 years) in the Antarctic.
The information below each card shows just scarce this type of collecting has become