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Fantastic original matte-finish 11.5 x 8.25 silver gelatin photograph of Wilbur Wright, León Bollée, and three others in an open automobile transporting a Wright Flyer near Le Mans, France, in 1908, annotated on the reverse of the mount in pencil: "En route pour d'Auvours." Matted to an overall size of 16 x 12. In very good to fine condition, with scattered surface scuffing.
Provenance: Christie's, Park Avenue, NY, April 16, 1991.
Wilbur Wright arrived in France in 1908 to conduct a series of public demonstration flights in order to secure a contract for the manufacture and sale of airplanes. There he was introduced to Léon Bollée, an automobile manufacturer and early advocate for aviation. The two became fast friends: in Wilbur's diary entry of June 8, 1908, he noted, 'I went down to Le Mans at the invitation of M. Léon Bollée to inspect some grounds. M. Bollée met us and took us about in his automobile to see several places of which the racecourse and the military field were the most desirable. He was very kind, and offered us the conveniences of his factory and a big room to assemble the machine in if we chose. We will probably locate here, as the conveniences offered by M. Bollée will be of great value.' In the biography The Bishop's Boys: A Life of Wilbur and Orville Wright, author Tom Crouch observes: 'There were, in fact, few things Bollée would not have done for Wilbur. A sport balloonist and president of the Aéro-Club de la Sarthe, he would become the Wrights' closest friend in France.'
Wright indeed chose the Les Hunaudieres Race Course in Le Mans as the site for his first demonstration flight, conducted on August 8, 1908. This was the first of nine flights he made at Les Hunaudieres Race Course, before moving to a larger field at the nearby Camp d’Auvours. Wilbur's flights captivated the public, and he secured the French contract with ease. A scarce, interesting photograph from Wilbur Wright's fruitful ventures at Le Mans, France.
