First World War Christmas card

‘Greetings to our soldier boy’. A Christmas card sent from New Zealand to a soldier overseas during the First World War.

At this time Pākehā often referred to New Zealand affectionately as ‘Maoriland’, and the fernleaf was an increasingly common motif for the Dominion. Here the New Zealand flag flutters in front of – but does not obscure – the Union Jack.

The author of the seasonal message, ‘R.J.P.’, was probably Robert J. Pope (c. 1863–1949), a prolific if uninspired Wellington poet and club cricketer whose poems appeared in the Evening Post with this byline.