During the global postcard craze that peaked around 1900 and continued for several decades thereafter, photographers in Africa grasped the opportunity to serve a lucrative market for images of the continent. Their picture postcards now contribute to understanding political and cultural changes in Africa at the time, as the rise of the new medium coincided with the expansion of colonial rule. Drawn from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, these compelling images of a lost world are accompanied by a textual exploration of the complicated stories they tell.