Divided back, unused postcard. Photographer:  Guido Bernardi, Genzano di Roma, Italy. Circa 1920s – 1930s. 

Price:  $15.00

A nice lion! Look at those eyes, they look human.

Genzano di Roma is a town and commune in the city of Rome, Italy – and the apparent home base for the photographer. We don’t know if he had a formal studio or may have worked out of a residence. Nothing, of note, was found for him, bearing in mind, we’re looking only from our limited vantage point here in the United States, without access to much in the way of Italian records. The wording on the reverse, “Proprieta artistica riservata”, translates to “Reserved artistic property.”

The card bears the description,  “Lago Di Nemi – Bronze di nave roma a.”  Lago di Nemi is Lake Nemi, located south of Rome.

And we found a better source for our postcard image on Wikipedia, showing a different view of the lion:

Decorazione bronzo navi di Nemi with the description:  “Navi di Nemi. Elemento decorativo in bronzo per testa di trave, rappresentante una testa di leone che stringe fra i denti un anello.”

Google translation: “Ships of Nemi. Bronze decorative element for beam head, representing a lion’s head clutching a ring between its teeth.”

Sources:  Genzano di Roma. n.d. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genzano_di_Roma (accessed July 12, 2024).

Lake Nemi. n.d. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Nemi (accessed July 12, 2024).

Decorazione bronzo navi di Nemi – Museo scienza e tecnologia Milano Nemi. n.d. https://it.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Decorazione_bronzo_navi_di_Nemi_-_Museo_scienza_e_tecnologia_Milano_Nemi_156.jpg (accessed July 12, 2024).