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Summary:: This is a black & white postcard of the Exhibition Building, showing the south west facade through the small shrubs and trees of the garden, pre 1905. The postcard is unused.

The Exhibition Building was built for the 1880 Melbourne International Exhibition, which opened to visitors on 1 October 1880. On 9 May 1901, it hosted the opening of the First Commonwealth Parliament of Australia. By the early 20th century, picture postcards of the Exhibition Building were a popular Melbourne souvenir.

The division of the reverse of the postcard, allowing a message to be written on one half and the address on the other, was not permitted in Britain until 1902 and Australia until 1905.
Description:: A black & white photograph of the Exhibition Building from south west showing Rathdowne Street facade, garden and roadway. A thin white border is on the left of the photograph and a wider white border is on the right, which contains a handwritten inscription reading 'Eileen' in black ink. On the reverse of the postcard there is space to write an address and to place a stamp. The card is unused.
Acquisition Information:: Transfer from Trustees of the Royal Exhibition Building (REB), 1996

Discipline:	History
Dimensions:	88 mm (Height), 139 mm (Width)

Tagged with:	buildings, civic mementoes, correspondence, exterior views, royal exhibition building, souvenirs, postcards, -1
Themes this item is part of:	Royal Exhibition Building Collection, Public Life & Institutions Collection
Primary Classification:	ROYAL EXHIBITION BUILDING
Secondary Classification:	Revenue
Tertiary Classification:	souvenir postcards
Inscriptions:	Obverse, text: EXHIBITION/ MELBOURNE; Copyright. Obverse, handwritten: Eileen Reverse, text: POST CARD; THE ADDRESS TO BE WRITTEN ON THIS SIDE; STAMP.
Place & Date Made:	Australia, pre 1905 The division of the reverse of the postcard, allowing a message to be written on one half and the address on the other, was not permitted in Britain until 1902 and Australia until 1905.
Place & Date Depicted:	Royal Exhibition Building (REB), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, pre 1905