With her white painted face, I believe this real photo postcard captures a kabuki actress playing a geisha, late 1910s/early 1920s. I find the image really striking, between her side cast gaze, the manner in which she holds the sleeve of her kimono stretched before her like a mask, the pattern of the textile itself, and the plain, seams-showing context in which photographed, perhaps at the corner of a stage. Gorgeously rich tonal range and black black, too. Feels to me both beautifully specific and also speaking much more broadly to aspects of femininity, seduction and the nature of the desire.
5 3/8 x 3 3/8 and in very good condition. Unused back.