The Edwardians had a craze for novelty postcards in the years leading up to World War I, but for reasons that will emerge, magic novelty cards are amongst the most difficult to find intact.
The story begins with a young engraver, Theodore Brown (1870–1938), who). The publishers included his own venture, The Stereoscopic Living Picture Company at Castle Street, Salisbury, and W Mate & Sons Ltd, 62 Commercial Road, Bournemouth. Technically, these cards are known as anaglyphs, which produce a stereographic effect by printing two images in complementary colours that are then viewed through red and green filters. Each card was printed with a red and green disc in the lower portion, red for the left eye and green for the right.