New Bridgeman Art Library collection offers unique view of the post over the last century

  • Extensive range of images from The British Postal Museum & Archive now available for reproduction
  • Easy-to-use online resource for picture editors, historical and educational publishers, TV producers - and even greeting cards

LONDON - 30 November 2007 - The Bridgeman Art Library, the renowned fine art image library, has announced its latest collection - The British Postal Museum & Archive (BPMA), providing a unique and sometimes quirky view of the post through the ages. The collection ranges from nostalgic 1920s rural images of postmen delivering mail on pony and cart or in a rowing boat, to humorous 1970s posters advising workers on suitable 'footwear' and ties for their uniforms - click here for pictures. For the first time, these pictures are now accessible and available for licensing through www.bridgemanart.com by putting $PST into the keyword search.

The BPMA provides a crucial piece of British social history and its photo library presents an extensive catalogue of over a century of historic photographs, starting from the late nineteenth century. Records in The Royal Mail Archive have been awarded Designated status in recognition of their outstanding national importance. Available pictures include the poster 'Quiet ties work best with Uniform', a watercolour of 'Postmen's Uniforms, 1894' and the black and white photo 'River postman George Evans in a boat' from around 1900. Researchers from the BBC television drama Life on Mars recently used the archive to portray a typical post office in the 1970s and Severn Valley Railways has licensed imagery for its recent exhibition on the 1940s.

Tony Conder, Chief Executive of The British Postal Museum & Archive said: "This is an exciting opportunity for The British Postal Museum & Archive and we're delighted to be working with Bridgeman, a leading source of fine art images, to bring the iconic images from our collections to a wider audience."

Harriet Bridgeman, founder of The Bridgeman Art Library, commented: "This collection shows what an invaluable contribution Royal Mail and its workers have made to British society over the years. It provides a fascinating glimpse into the story of the post over the years including the history of uniforms, the development of transport, changing working conditions and even what the post box has looked like over the years!"

Many of the images in the postal collection are in high resolution so are quick and easy to download and license, whatever the commercial requirement. Those interested in using the images may include picture editors, historical and educational book publishers, TV programme/documentary makers as well as greeting card companies.

This latest archive brings the total number of collections represented by The Bridgeman Art Library to over 5,000. Every subject, theme and style is covered by the library's extensive archive in a sweep of images ranging from the major works of national collections through to the hidden treasures of small museums, historic houses and private individuals. In many instances this is the first time these images have been seen.

-ENDS-

About The British Postal Museum & Archive
The British Postal Museum & Archive, based in London, is the public identity of the Postal Heritage Trust charity. Royal Mail is a public business which has touched the UK publics' lives for nearly 400 years. The archives in the care of the BPMA range from employment records and staff magazines to Postmaster General's papers and original stamp work. They are the oldest business archives in the world. Records in The Royal Mail Archive have been Designated as an Outstanding Collection which means they are officially recognised as being of outstanding national importance.

The majority of the photographs came from the photographic library created by the Post Office which began to grow with the start of the Public Relations Department in the 1930s, providing material for posters, training material and the Post Office Magazine.

About The Bridgeman Art Library (BAL)
Established for 35 years and with four international offices, The Bridgeman Art Library is the world's leading source of fine art, history and culture with some 300,000 images available on-line, plus 750,000 historical photographs, from 8000 locations. It represents museums, galleries and artists throughout the world by providing a central source of fine art for image users.

BAL also develops educational resource packages, publishes art catalogues, offers copyright advice, licenses reproduction rights and provides sales services. The organisation has a long history of feeding monies back into museums, of figures up to £1.5 million per year.

For more information please visit www.bridgemanart.com

Alison Smith
The PressOffice - PR for Bridgeman Art Library
Tel: 01780 721 433
Email: asmith@targetwire.com

Annabel O'Connor-Fenton
Marketing Executive, Bridgeman Art Library
Tel: 020 7096 1963
Email: annabel.oconnorfenton@bridgeman.co.uk


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