Eisenbahnball - Programme, Decorative item - 1900 - Limited edition

Viennese Railway Society Ensemble (1869–1900) – Early Railway Congress and Mechanical Tanzkarte

An outstanding ensemble of three rare artefacts documenting the social and cultural life of the Austrian and German railway elite from the late 19th century to the dawn of the 20th century.

The highlight is a fully functional mechanical Tanzkarte (dance card) from the 26th Eisenbahn-Ball, held in Vienna on 5 February 1900. This intricate object, produced by Aug. Kreten, k.k. Hoflieferant, Graz, combines mechanical craftsmanship and Art Nouveau elegance. Its gilt-embossed board carries four movable levers marked Walzer, Quadrille, Polka Française and Polka Schnell, used by ladies to note their reserved dances. The interior includes the original printed programme, green satin lining, miniature pencil and the gilt legend “26. Eisenbahn-Ball 5. Februar 1900”. The mechanism works perfectly; only the silk loops of the hanging ribbon show light wear. A superb survivor of Vienna’s fin-de-siècle railway society.

Accompanying it are two printed menus and concert programmes from the Deutscher Eisenbahn-Congreß in Vienna, July 1869, hosted by the Gemeinderath der Stadt Wien inthe Cur-Salon im Stadtpark. The reception featured a lavish buffet by Hembsch & Meier and a concert by Eduard Strauss, including works by Richard Wagner, Johann and Josef Strauss, and Franz Schubert—among them “An der schönen blauen Donau” and “Bahn frei!”. A related Festvorcomité document from the Verein deutscher Eisenbahn-Verwaltungen (printer: L. C. Zamarski, Wien) completes the set, marking one of the earliest international railway congresses of the Austro-Hungarian period.

Together these pieces illustrate three decades of continuity in Viennese railway society’s elite gatherings, merging technical progress, music and high culture.

Condition: Overall excellent for age; complete, minimal edge wear, fully functional mechanism.