An original early French maritime postcard captioned “Souvenir de Voyage – Ernest Simon – Cie des Messageries Maritimes – Par grosse mer.” Printed in Marseille by H. Grimaud & Cie, 54 rue Mazenod, between 1905 and 1910.

Description: Full broadside view of the Messageries Maritimes ocean liner Ernest Simons battling heavy seas. The ship heels slightly to port, with both funnels emitting dense smoke and a large breaking wave striking the bow.

Commentary: Dramatic rough sea postcards of MM ships are scarce, and this Grimaud‑printed variant is particularly uncommon. This composition is the most visually striking of the three known postcard variants of the Ernest Simons in heavy seas.

History: Ernest Simons was built at La Ciotat in 1893 for Messageries Maritimes and served on the Marseille – Indochina route. Built slightly shorter than the Australia series to allow for easier maneuvering on the Saigon River. The ship was requestioned by the State in 1914, serving as a mail ship. She was torpedoed and sunk off the coast of Algeria by UC‑27 on 3 April 1917.

Note: The "Charles Anstay - Goderich, Ont." imprint does not refer to a publisher or distributor. Charles was a local Goderich, Ontario (Canada) man known to have been an avid collector of things, who often "stamped" his collection in this way. He was almost certainly active many decades after this postcard was first published. He is believed to have passed away in 1988.