Shamrocks, Pigs, and Posthorns!

If there's anything luckier than
a cheery postman with his posthorn
brandishing a giant four-leaf clover,

it is one astride a galloping pig
who spills his cards and letters
while dropping gold coins.

Prosit Neujahr! 1900
~
Cheers for the New Year!

This fanciful postman made his frolicking ride
on the 30th of December 1899
from Leoben, a Styrian city in central Austria

to a Frau Oberstleutnant ~ Mrs. Lieutenant Colonel
Fany von Fabriesi(?) of Graz in Austria.

This is my contribution to Sepia Saturday
where I wish everyone the best of good luck
and abundant happiness in the new year.

Helicons and Pigs

Schmückt den Saal mit grünen Zweigen!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!
Tretet an zum bunten Reigen!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!
Auf und nieder, immer wieder!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!
Singt die alten Weihnachtslieder!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!

Zündet an die Weihnachtskerzen!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!
Hell und warm wie eure Herzen!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!
Laßt die Weihnachtsglocken klingen!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!
Und euch frohe Botschaft bringen!
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la!

Schneller weg das alte Jahr vergeht,
Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la!
Heil die Neuen, ihr Jungs und Mädels!
Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la!
Lachend, alle zusammen schluckend,
Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la, la!
Ohne Rücksicht auf Wind und Wetter,
Fa, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la!

Frohe Festtage
und
Prosit Neujahr!!!

This  wonderful card with its embossed musical pig was posted on 31 December 1906 to someone living in the small German village of Gahlenz which is about 20 kilometers east of the Saxon city of Chemnitz. For some reason pigs are considered symbols of good luck in Germany and appear on many postcards offering good wishes for the new year. The bass helicon, or helikon in German,
is the European equivalent of the American Sousaphone. Its long brass plumbing wraps around the player allowing a comfortable posture while marching. Or dancing. I don't think by itself the helicon is a symbol of anything except loud noise.

However this is not my first story of a talented pig. In my post Educated Sheep and Musical Pigs from March 2016, the animal trainer Prof. Blaek Doblado toured America in 1909 with a musical pig named Louie who could also play the bass horn. A case of life imitating art? Or vice versa? Unfortunately I have yet to find a picture of Louie so we will just have to use our imagination.

By a happy coincidence I do have a photo postcard
of a man playing a bass helicon.
He might easily pass
as a model for this postcard.

His name, location, and date are unknown
but I suspect he is a civic bandsman from the 1920s-1930s
who came from somewhere in central Europe.
Perhaps Austria, Germany,
Poland, or Czechoslovakia (as it was then known).

YouTube provided a very suitable video
so that we can hear what a helicon sounds like.
Stefan Huber, trombone, and Manuel Winbeck, helicon,
from LaBrassBanda
play their version of a Christmas classic.
Feliz navidad

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This is my contribution to Sepia Saturday
where I wish all my blogging friends
very good cheer for the New Year!