Victorian Christmas Greeting Card Santa Flying Machine 1913

Santa, apparently having watched the Wright Brothers' first flight eleven years prior and thought 'yes, but make it Christmas,' is piloting an honest-to-God biplane packed with dolls, children, and a full Christmas tree over a snow-covered village like some kind of festive aerial kidnapper. Two girls on what appears to be a balcony watch him approach with expressions that land somewhere between 'wonder' and 'I have seen things I cannot unsay' — which, frankly, is the correct reaction to a bearded old man dive-bombing your neighborhood in a wood-and-canvas aircraft stuffed with other people's children. Copyrighted by John Winsch in 1913, this card captures the exact moment humanity discovered powered flight and immediately asked 'but could it be more unhinged?' — and the answer, gloriously, was yes.