Militaria, Vintage Clothing, Collectibles
Lot 181:
Description
EXCEPTIONAL piece of military aviation history – Kerwood’s personal copy of L’Histoire de l’Escadrille Lafayette, Volume I, an extraordinary and likely unique relic of the Lafayette Flying Corps. This historic volume includes a remarkable series of signed photographic prints, essentially biographical pages, representing 56 pilots and 3 principal organizers of the unit. Each signed print could be individually framed, yet together they form an irreplaceable archive of the men who created, led, and flew in the famed Lafayette Escadrille and Lafayette Flying Corps during the First World War. Among the notable signatures are James Norman Hall, Charles Kerwood, Jarousse de Silac, Commandant Brocard, Dr. Edmund Gros, and Georgia Ovington, along with a wide representation of pilots including Paul Baer, Bill Thaw, Clyde Balsley, Edwin Parsons, Alan Winslow, and many others. The breadth and concentration of autographs within this single volume is without equal, and it is almost certainly unique in its scope. As Kerwood’s personal copy, this offering carries both intimate provenance and unparalleled historical importance, making it one of the most significant autograph compilations associated with the Lafayette Flying Corps ever to surface. A museum-worthy artifact of aviation history and the enduring Franco-American bond.
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