Rare vintage matte-finish 8.25 x 11.5 half-length portrait photo of young Hirohito smartly dressed in a three-piece suit and holding his hat, gloves, and walking stick, signed in Japanese characters in fountain pen. Reverse of photo is stamped “Isabey, Paris,” and originated from the estate of French politician Marshal Philippe Petain. In fine condition, with some light foxing to lower border (easily matted out), lightly trimmed top and side borders, and a few faint surface marks.
Hirohito journeyed to Europe in 1921 as part of a multi-month tour, meeting with King George V and future king Edward VIII. He also visited France in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the death of Napoleon Bonaparte. While there he toured various battlefields with Philippe Petain, the man who would head Vichy France during World War II. As the first member of the Japanese Imperial Family to set foot in a foreign land, he also went shopping—a practically unheard of task for a royal. Undoubtedly it was during a stop in Paris that the Crown Prince posed for the portrait offered here—a carefree visit to a city that twenty years later would be visited by a war headed in part by Hirohito. Pre-certified John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and RRAuction COA.
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