A funny animal illustration by French painter and illustrator Ray-Lambert dating from the 1930s.

Old French photograph of pretty young woman made by the photographer Henri Delgay in Toulouse in 1920s.

French engraving representing four types of monkey by the drawer Victor Adam dating from the middle of the 19th century.

Jean-Victor Vincent Adam, born in Paris on January 28, 1801 and died in Viroflay on December 30, 1866, is a French painter and lithographer. He has illustrated numerous works and his drawings have been interpreted in engraving by Antoine François Gelée, Émile Giroux and Jean-François Pourvoyeur.

This engraving is probably the result of a reissue of the encyclopedia on wildlife of Buffon.

12 French bills of exchange from a boilermaker in eastern France from 1960s.

These bills of exchange are financial instruments for loans between companies. Before the massive arrival of computers, these exchanges were carried out by hand as shown by these documents.

Vintage French fashion magazine "La femme chez elle" with illustrations, articles and advertising - May 1931 - 34 pages

"La femme chez elle" is a French bi-weekly women’s magazine, founded in 1899, then disappeared in 1938. Everyday life is relayed through embroidery, cooking, education, good manners or even furniture advice.

Very beautiful portrait of a young girl - French postcard - 1920s

Set of 9 small French bills of exchange from 1950s with tax stamps and rubber-stamps.

Note that several bills of exchange have a hole in the lower left corner: these bills of exchange had to be stapled to the corresponding bills and had to be detached more or less cleanly once the customer had paid the expected amount.

The last photos show the back of the bills of exchange.

These bills of exchange are financial instruments for loans between companies. Before the massive arrival of computers, these exchanges were carried out by hand as shown by these documents.

Huge French lottery tickets "Les gueules cassées" from 1937.

These lottery tickets were sold on the street or in small shops to help veterans.

French postcard representing a young woman on a bicycle. This postcard dates from 1900s. It has been sent, but the back contains only the address.

French religious card - First communion card from 1910s

French postcard from the 1900s depicting two children with angel wings.

Block of 4 old French stamps representing Figaro de Beaumarchais from 1953. This stamp was created by draughtsman André Spitz and engraver Henry Cheffer. These stamps have not been used.

Beautiful French letterhead from a soldier send in 1940 to his wife. Beautiful header of 134th Infantry Regiment of French army with the effigy of a Gaul.

The letter suffered the outrages of time and humidity which also makes it visually beautiful to me

Huge and decorative bearer share of a loan realized in France for Serbia in 1913 on two sheets.

The owner of this bearer share could sell each small coupon at the stock exchange price and the coupons sold were cut.

Each bearer share have one sheet of 100 coupons. On each bearer share five were cut and sold by their owner as shown in the last photo. 

These documents were traditionally kept between two bed linen for the less fortunate, in a safe at home or in a bank for the more fortunate. 

This single document could have been a lot of money at the time.

These documents will be sent folded in four as they have been kept since decades.

French postcard with a flower and the inscription "Bonne fête" from 1940s. Postcard sent in 1947.

In Europe and probably in other countries, it is tradition to wish a "bonne fête" to relatives and friends according to their first name and the calendar of saints. It is a tradition dating from the 16th century that lasted until the beginning of the 20th century and is gradually being lost.

Vintage French postcard with a young woman squire from 1904.

Note that the addresses were not precise at the time but the mail arrived at the destination.