Real photo postcard showing a posed studio portrait of a tattooed woman seated on a draped platform. She is Stella (aka Edith Grassman) wife of famous tattoo artist Deafy (aka Samuel Grassman) who operated at 19 Bowery in New York City. Stella was a well known tattooed lady and performed with Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circus ca 1930. Printed back credit for “PICTURE - POST CARD CO. - POST CARDS - SAN FRANCISCO” is visible. The reverse is unused with no message text.


Stella sits at a slight angle, smiling toward the camera, with tattoo coverage visible across both arms, chest, and legs. She wears a sleeveless dress with a patterned bodice and a skirt that reveals the upper thighs, and she has a headband holding back short, curled hair. Her footwear includes strap-style shoes with contrasting light socks. The tattoos by her husband Deafy form dense, continuous imagery with floral elements and filled panels that wrap the limbs and torso. The platform is covered with a smooth cloth that falls in folds to the floor, providing a clean studio setting. Lighting is even and frontal, producing soft shadows and clear detail in the inkwork and fabric texture. On the reverse, the postcard layout is printed but blank, with the San Francisco company line along the edge and a dotted stamp box outline, plus a small pencil notation visible near the border.


The reverse reads: [edge imprint] PICTURE - POST CARD CO. - POST CARDS - SAN FRANCISCO. Handwritten inscriptions read: COLBXZ 1/15/06 V2. Adv..