At HistoCrypt 2026 in Amiens, French collector Edmond Kern presented his remarkable collection of historical cryptographic material. Besides a number of cipher devices, the collection includes many encrypted postcards. I am very grateful to Edmond for allowing me to feature these fascinating items on my blog. Today I am starting with the first postcard, and I expect several more will follow.
The postcard presented here was sent in France in 1906. It is addressed to an unmarried woman, Mademoiselle Camille Boudrot, who lived in Rigny-le-Ferron, in the Aube department.
Like most encrypted postcards from that period, this one was apparently written by a young man to his beloved. Here is the address side of the card:
And here is the encrypted message:
Can a reader decipher this message?
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