Description:

Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, Iconic Photo by J. Rosenthal in Rare Large Size

A striking and unusually large silver gelatin print measuring 16" x 20" (double the standard 8" x 10") of perhaps the best-known image of World War II. Mounted to a thin board which has scattered staining, minor creasing, and remnants of adhesive. Photograph shows some discoloration and surface imperfections. Expert grisaille retouching for publication purposes.

Shot on Iwo Jima on February 23, 1945 by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal (1911-2006), just five days after American forces commenced their invasion of the Japanese-occupied island (which would last a further four weeks), the photograph documents six Marines hoisting an American flag attached to a water pipe on the summit of Mount Suribachi. The photograph actually depicts the second flag-raising of the day - a smaller one had been erected just ninety minutes earlier, but could not be easily seen from the northern side of the mountain, so the decision was made to replace it with another, much larger flag. Rosenthal arrived just in time to capture the moment, which was also concurrently recorded by a Marine sergeant in a color movie.

Rosenthal sent his film to the Associated Press' Guam office that day to be developed and printed, and upon seeing it, photograph editor John Bodkin reportedly exclaimed, 'Her's one for all time!' He immediately transmitted the image to AP headquarters in New York City, where it was quickly picked up off the wire by hundreds of periodicals, and then published on front pages nationwide on Sunday, February 25, 1945, just two days after it was taken.

The image is the only photograph to win the Pulitzer Prize for Photography in the same year as its publication, the committee stated it was a 'frozen flash of history', and has come to be regarded as one of the most significant and iconic photographs of the war. In his later years, when asked about the photo, Rosenthal would say, 'I took the picture, the Marines took Iwo Jima.'

Based on its larger-than-average size, this particular print of the photograph was most likely created for use on the cover of a tabloid newspaper, as newsprint is notoriously porous, and utilizes a lower halftone screen to compensate for ink spread. The ample dimensions would have allowed the printer to reduce the image so as to better maintain the shot's overall resolution on the paper. The retouching also indicates newspaper production, as the accentuation of the photograph's shadows and fine details (such as the soldiers' hands) would have helped prevent those important nuances from being lost during the printing process. Auction records for the past fifteen years include no other images of this size,

Rosenthal's photograph became the centerpiece of a war-bond poster that helped raise $26 billion in 1945, and was subsequently commemorated on two U.S. postage stamps (1945 and 1995) and used as the model for the United States Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia (his name is inscribed at the bottom right side on the front). In addition to the Pulitzer, Rosenthal was also posthumously awarded the Distinguished Public Service Award by the United States Marine Corps on September 15, 2006. An enduring and important piece of American and military history.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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October 18, 2023 11:00 AM EDT
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