?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 4,000 - $ 6,000
ERNEST LOUIS LESSIEUX (1848-1925) & CAREY GRAND PRIX D'AVIATION / ANGERS. 1912. 39 5/8x28 1/8 inches. Les Editions Nationales, Paris. Condition B+: repaired tears and minimum restoration along vertical and horizontal folds; restored pin holes in corners; repaired tears in margins. In 1912, the Aero Club of France held a flying competition. These were extremely popular in the early days of aviation and thousands of people would show up to watch the impressive displays of the early aircraft. This competition, however, was different than the others. It was "the first contest to show the extent to which the aeroplane could be depended on as an instrument of war . . . A surprising total of thirty-five constructors entered their machines and practically all the famous pilots of Europe were on hand. Most of the military attachés accredited to Paris were present--keenly interested in the potentialities of different monoplanes and biplanes" (Looping the Loop p. 83). In the middle of the event, bad weather forced the competition to be postponed. But not before the great French Aviator Roland Garros successfully landed his aircraft and won the prize. This image has been misidentified as Garros waving in a victory salute as his ground team labors to stop his plane (early planes had no brakes). However, given that the poster is advertising an event to come, that is an impossibility. Rather, it represents an anonymous airman, giving the "OK" sign to his ground crew, who have been holding on to his plane while his engines warm up enough for takeoff. This is the smaller format. Looping the Loop 55, Sport 182.
