Linjebuss

This is an authentic 1947 Swedish travel poster created for Linjebuss (Swedish Transeuropean Bus Lines), promoting luxury coach journeys connecting Scandinavia with the great cities of Europe in the years following World War II.

The poster was designed by Marianne Heijkenskjöld, a talented freelance illustrator and graphic designer known for her elegant fashion illustrations and prolific work as a book illustrator. Her distinctive artistic style brings a warm, narrative quality to this image — a blue Volvo coach arriving in a sunlit Italian village, where locals and travelers gather outside a ristorante. The vivid colors and lively composition perfectly capture the optimism and romance of postwar European travel.

In January 1946, Linjebuss began operating its buses throughout war-torn Europe. With much of the continent’s railway infrastructure destroyed and air travel still limited, there was a desperate need for reliable long-distance transport. This initiative marked the beginning of Linjebuss’s international operations, linking northern and southern Europe by road and symbolizing a new era of connection and mobility.

Printed in Sweden in 1947, this poster remains in excellent condition, with fresh, vivid colors and only minimal wear.

A rare and beautifully illustrated piece of Scandinavian travel history, this poster is a superb example of Swedish postwar design and would make a striking framed centerpiece for collectors of mid-century art, Volvo memorabilia, or European travel posters.