The world's first Christmas cards were sent in 1843, the same year as Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol was published. Designed by John Callcott Horsley and commissioned by Sir Henry Cole, two batches of 2,050 cards were printed and sold for a shilling each in London that year.

The world's first Christmas cards were sent in 1843, the same year as Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol was published. Designed by John Callcott Horsley and commissioned by Sir Henry Cole, two batches of 2,050 cards were printed and sold for a shilling each in London that year.