Another bright future

We recently wrote on the fashion of futuristic postcards at the beginning of the 20th century, illustrated with American, German, French and Hungarian examples. We have also mentioned that they were often packaged with various food, encouraging the buyer to collect all the pieces of the series. The Russian examples of this genre presented on the fototelegraf.ru site are exactly this case. The eight postcards were included in the cake boxes of the Einem candy factory, whose poster has been already published by us, although in the context of a completely different future. Nevertheless, we cannot say that the two visions of the future radically exclude each other. Einem was wise enough to date the pictures not to the late 20th century, but to as far as 2259. And indeed, who knows whether the unforeseen anomalies of 20th-century development would not be really adjusted by then?


The date of 2259 suggests that in spite of the year of 1914 mentioned in the text of the first picture, it was rather in 1909 that the postcards predicted a precisely 250 years later future, which would also fit to the European fashion of the genre between 1905 and 1910. The images were not made by montage technique, such as in the west, but drawn by hand, but they took over several elements from the Western series: the typical cable-railways, the collisions between streamlined cars, the low-flying private planes. But there emerge also those monumental tower blocks, which would be in fact realized in the 1930s. Nevertheless, the characteristic historic motifs of the city will stand untouched even after two hundred and fifty years. moscow and the imperial guard are forever.

“Lubyanka Square. The blue sky is dotted with the bright lines of high-flying airplanes, airships and cable cars. From the square under the bridge will start the long trains of the Moscow Metropolitan, about which we only talked back in 1914. On the bridge of the metro we see a group of brave Russian cavalrymen, who preserved their splendid appearance since our age. On the blue sky we can discover the airship of the Einem company flying to Tula with a consignment of chocolate for local retailers.”

“The Moscow river. Large transporter and commercial ships swim on the deep translucent waves of the huge commercial harbor. The entire world’s fleet, and only the peaceful one, as the warships were demobilized after the Hague World Peace Conference. In the lively crowd we can discover the dress of all the peoples of the globe.”

“The Kremlin is still beautiful, and with its old white-washed walls and golden domes gives the impression of a fairy tale. At the Moskvorecky Bridge, however, we already see the huge new buildings of trading companies, trusts, associations, syndicates and others. The sky is dotted with the graceful curves of cable cars. And a light seaplane is preparing to fly off on the wharf.”

“Theatre (Teatralnaya) Square. The rhythm of life became a hundred times faster. The traffic of wheeled, winged, propelled and other vehicle is pulsing everywhere. The Mjur and Meriliz (Muir and Mirrielees) supermarket, which already existed in 1846, has increased to fabulous proportions, and its main departments are in direct contact with the major air railways. A number of cars come roll along from under the bridge.”

“The Red Square. Roaring airplanes, rattling trams, car and bicycle horns, roaring engines, shouting passers-by. The monument of Minin and Pozharsky. A police with sword is standing in the middle. Terrified pedestrians fleeing to the Lobnoe mesto. So it will be 200 years from now.”

“Peter’s Park. The line of trees has increased unrecognizably. The old Peter Palace was restored, and it houses now the museum of the era of Peter the Great. Everywhere splendid fountains shed their water. In the air, perfectly cleaned from microbes and dust, airships and airplanes are floating. The crowd, dressed in the colorful costume of the 23rd century, enjoys the beauty of nature at the same place where their great-great-great-grandparents did.”

“The Central Railway Station. Winter is just like two hundred years earlier, and the snow is just as white and cold. Thousands of arrivals and departures pass through the Central Railway Station of Land and Air Travel, and everything happens in a very fast, predictable and comfortable way. Land and air are both at the disposal to passengers. Those who wish so, can travel at the speed of a telegram.”

“A clear winter day in 2259. A corner of the “merry old” Moscow. Good ol’ Yar restaurant still serves the entertainment of Moscow, as it did for three centuries. For the sake of convenience and fun, the St. Petersburg Avenue has been entirely converted into a clear ice mirror on which the gracious and richly decorated snow mobiles glide and fly at lightning speed. Moscow is true to its traditions even in the 23rd century.”