Front:
IINAL
Thll
SrU
வீசி
A
Back:
THIS SOUVENIR POST CARD OF THE
FIRST OFFICIAL BALLOON ASCENSION
COMES TO YOU FROM THE
64TH ANNUAL EXHIBITION OF THE
RUBBER CITY STAMP CLUB
AKRON, OHIO
TAKEN FROM AN HISTORIC PRINT IN THE BIBLIOTHEQUE
NATIONALE IN PARIS, GENEROUSLY TINTED TO ADD CQL
TO THE OCCASION
RCSC EX STA 5 NOV 1983
AKRON, OHIO
200 YEARS OF A
THE TWO FRENCH BROTHERS, JOSEPH AND ETIENNE
MONTGOLFIERE, EXPERIMENTED FROM NOVEMBER, 1782 TO
MID-SEPTEMBER 1783 WITH THE USE OF SMOKE IN CREATING
A LIFTING FORCE INSIDE A PAPER SPHERE. THEIR WORK WAS
BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF KING LOUIS XVI WHO
AUTHORIZED A SHOWING ON SEPTEMBER 19, 1783 IN THE
COURT YARD OF THE PALACE AT VERSAILLES WITH THE
ACADEMY OF SCIENCE MEMBERS PRESENT.
THEY BUILT A BALLOON USING TWO LAYERS OF PAPER, WITH
LINEN PACKING CLOTH BETWEEN, 57 FEET HIGH AND 41 FEET
IN DIAMETER WITH A CAPACITY OF 37,500 CU FT. SINCE LITTLE
WAS KNOWN ABOUT UPPER ATMOSPHERE, THE KING WOULD
NOT APPROVE A MAN ASCENDING, ALLOWING ONLY A DUCK, A
COCK AND A SHEEP TO MAKE THE FLIGHT IN A WICKER CAGE.
THE FLIGHT ACHIEVED AN ALTITUDE OF 1700 FEET, LASTED
BUT EIGHT MINUTES, AND LANDED IN A FOREST ABOUT 2
MILES FROM THE STARTING POINT. THE ANIMALS WERE
FOUND SAFE AND SOUND, THUS PAVING THE WAY FOR MAN'S
SUBSEQUENT VOYAGES INTO THE UNCHARTED ATMOSPHERE.
THIS CARD IS NO. I IN A SERIES ON THE EARLY DEVELOPMENT
OF LIGHTER-THAN-AIR CRAFT.
1783
44309
1983
IN MICHID
BALLOONING
20c
Intrepid 1861
