Letter Openers

The next best thing to a hand written letter is a beautiful letter opener. 

Maybe I get sentimental because I know it’s only a matter of time before a letter opener will just be another object from the past.  Between email and online bills, it’s easy to see that one day the children of the world will ponder the purpose of a letter opener.  But for now, I’ll enjoy the variety I find at yard sales and estate auctions.  I think about how many desks they’ve graced, how many hands have held them, and wonder what news they’ve unleashed.  A letter opener can transport you back to an era of waiting for the postman and the drama of the smooth rip across the envelope.

Here are a few favorites…

This one was probably a giveaway from the Fuller Brush man. Apparently, he went door-to-door selling cleaning and personal care products. How Mad Men is this?

I love the smooth elegant hand juxtaposed with the comical face. 

 

This one commemorates the Cunard Ocean Lines Building in NYC at 25 Broadway. Not long after the building was completed in 1920, Cunard suffered during the Great Depression and merged with rival White Star Lines (of Titanic fame) in 1934. As sea traffic continued to decline because of increased competition from air travel, Cunard sold its grand building in 1966.  Ah, but this letter opener still remains after almost 100 years. 

Letter openers. What stories they could tell…