New Year 2019

This card reads Die besten Neujahrsgrüsse (The best New Year greetings). I am charmed by the tiny tot and piglet toasting the midnight hour with glasses of wine, and the dancing mushrooms joining in. The pig carries a 4-leaf clover; the boy a sprig of greenery. (click to enlarge)

By Carolyn Yeager

NO ONE HAS BETTER CARDS THAN THE GERMANS [used to have, anyway]. The pig is the most ubiquitous image in New Year Greetings in Germany going way back. The pig represents prosperity and plenty, as do coins laying around or falling freely for the taking. The four-leaf clover is almost always present, along with the horseshoe, to represent good luck. Then a glass of wine or spirits for good cheer and enjoyment. And, of course, the clock pointing to 12. Sometimes it is a calendar showing Jan. 1^st instead.