Man in Bowler and Oversized Coat, View From Behind, Elusive (Pre-Magritte) Antique RPPC vintage papier mache head but with plenty of wear

but with plenty of wear and aging to the paint

this one for me all about the whole mise en scene

with eye of the scope held by our heroine serving as the vanishing point

with some surface splitting to the wood showing through the white paint

Let the warbling lute complain:

Man in Bowler and Oversized Coat, View From Behind, Elusive (Pre-Magritte) Antique RPPC vintage papier mache head but with plenty of wearI'm rather obsessed with this one, striking and evocative and rather iconic feeling, but which refuses to be pinned down. The back of the postcard dates it to the 1910s or early 20s, I believe (I took some time comparing this exact font and format to other real photo postcards and that seems to be the period of use), meaning it pre dates Magritte's earliest man in bowler painting by at least a few years, though those are what it immediately calls to