Introduced in 1901. Discontinued in 1907. Blue decks show up with some regularity, but I have never seen a red deck or even a red single (except the red sample card shown below).

Mrs. Robinson erroneously showed this deck as “Motorcycle No. 2.” The deck she called Motorcycle No. 1 is clearly a later issue, so I have switched them. Thanks to a fellow collector for pointing out this mistake. Let me add that the resources I have at my fingertips today (including instant access to the knowledge and collections of other enthusiasts) enable me to easily research many of the nuances of the manufacture and history of Bicycle cards. For Mrs. Robinson to have achieved the high level of accuracy that she did in her pamphlet in 1955 is admirable, indeed. As Laura Cumming so aptly states in The Vanishing Velasquez, “We do not know better than these people of the past, we just know more than they could.”

An enlarged version of this beautiful back design is shown below. The machine depicted seems more like a motorized bicycle (or what was called a “moped” in the 1970’s) than a motorcycle to me, but I’m not an expert on early motorcycles. Note the handlebar motif at the tops and sides of the card, and the sprocket in the center. Close scrutiny also reveals that this is yet another seemingly symmetrical back designs with a subtle “one-way” element. It’s the little shaded circles that surround the sprocket in the center of the card.

Motorcycle No. 1 is one of several Bicycle back designs that were also released in the United Kingdom. Please click on “UK” above for more information.