The National Gallery of Art's West Building is shown in a black-and-white view from the National Mall. Its long neoclassical facade, central columned portico, and dome rise behind rows of small trees, with a broad lawn and roadway in the foreground. The building had opened in 1941, so the card shows a new museum in wartime Washington. A penciled message describes spending the day there for art and hearing the President at the Cemetery the day before.
Postcard Details
Message · English, in pen
We are spending
the day in this place
Amanda, with
wish you three were
here - Heard the
President - at the
Cemetery yesterday.
a thunder shower
[illegible]
there. Hope all are
well, love Momma
will write again after-
PostmarkedWashington, DC, November 12, 1941, 16:00
Black-and-white photographic image; film edge/sprocket-like marks at left and light scratches across the sky suggest a print from a negative. Printed caption 'NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART / WASHINGTON, D. C.' and, along the lower edge, 'View of the Building from the Mall'. Postmark: WASHINGTON, D.C. NOV 12 4-PM 1941. Divided-back glossy B&W photo card; printed defense savings slogan box 'BUY DEFENSE SAVINGS BONDS AND STAMPS', partly overlapped by the 1-cent George Washington stamp. Message written in pencil sideways along the long edge. Light edge wear and a few foxing spots.
Cite this card
National Gallery of Art from the Mall, Washington, DC, 1941, postcard, c. 1941. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/national-gallery-of-art-from-the-mall-washington-dc-1941. Accessed November 2, 2026.
