Military Photographs

Military Photographs and Photograph Albums appear mostly in our dedicated specialist Books, Paperwork & Photographs auctions which we hold twice a year. Photograph albums are quite a main part of this auction.

Photography was first used in a major way during the Crimean War and later during the American Civil War. Early photographs like Ambrotypes and Daguerreotypes are very popular when they are offered at auction. Early photograph albums taken in the far reaches of the empire such as India can offer an insight into what life was like in these parts compared to life at the time in the Western World.

In recent years photograph albums with images taken in China and the Far East have been well contested. We have secured very strong results for our clients with photograph albums taken in this region.

During WW1, although authorities banned photography at the front lines as an attempt to prevent the general public to seeing the horrors unfolding in the trenches of the Western Front, some officers and private soldiers ignored these rules. As such, original photograph albums taken on the front lines of France and Flanders can command high prices.

In 2018, we were consigned the photographic archive of the late Brian L Davis. Brian had, over the years, built up one of the most substantial archives of Military photographs from WW2. Some of the images he used in the various books he authored, but a number of these images had never been seen.