The History of Paper Calling Cards
Paper calling cards, similar to business cards today, were once the staple by which all polite society operated. The etiquette of "calling" on family, friends and acquaintances was well established and ritualized, and the calling card, or visiting card (from the French "visite biletes"), was a central part of visiting etiquette.
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History
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Believed to have originated in 15th-century China, use of the calling card was a well-established practice in Europe by the 17th century, with royalty and the aristocracy sending cards to people's homes to notify them of their arrival in town. With the advent of industrialization and the rise of the middle class in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the calling card spread and developed its own elaborate system of rules, particularly in Britain, becoming widely used as a way to screen people and to prevent social climbers from entering elite circles.
Significance
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The calling card was crucial to the social life of anyone from the middle or upper class by the 19th century. A person was not usually received in another's home without first presenting his calling card, and the card was deemed as representative of his character.
Most homes had a silver card tray at the front entrance where cards were collected and perused by other visitors with the expectation of reciprocal calls. If a call was not returned, it meant the recipient of the card was not interested in making your acquaintance or continuing an acquaintance.
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Function
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Besides seeking an introduction or providing notification of arrival, calling cards served numerous roles. In Britain, for example, messages were relayed by folding the cards' corners or initialing them. If condolences needed to be sent, a card would be delivered to a home with the left-hand lower corner folded. If a person were leaving town and wanted to notify an acquaintance, she could drop her card off with the initials "p.p.c" written on it, for "pour prendre conge" (meaning "to take your leave" in French).
Types
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Although a man's card was almost always smaller than a woman's and was usually carried in a case, the style and elaborateness of cards varied throughout time and by place. For example, an 18th-century card from Paris would be so elaborate in design that it could classify as art, whereas a calling card from Regency England would be very simple and plain. All Regency cards were printed on cream card stock, while later Victorian engravings appeared on white unglazed bristol board. Later cards also tended to include more information on them, such as visiting days.
Comeback
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After the early years of the 20th century, the calling card phased out of fashion, but it is making a steady comeback with more people using them every year, according to ArtofManliness.com. Cards today tend to include a person's name, phone number, and email or Web address, and they are ideal for handing out in any social situation, be it a party, a date or a simple networking opportunity.
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References
- Photo Credit business card image by Leticia Wilson from Fotolia.com
