Joe Rosenthal Personal Iwo Jima Photo Album 52 photographs shot by Joe Rosenthal Associated Press (AP)
Associated Press Photographer Joe Rosenthal's Personal Iwo Jima Photo Album consists of 52 photographs shot by Joe Rosenthal Associated Press (AP) over three weeks during the heart of the Battle of Iwo Jima February, 1945. During its exhibition at the "Intrepid Museum, New York seven photos were lost and replaced with identical theme photos of the Battle of Guam, 1944 as marked in the album.
The photos have been in the collection of the War Museum of New York for over a decade and half. Prior to the museums possession the album was in the possession of a noted collector (anonymous) who purchased it directly from Mr. Rosenthal during a period he was destitute and living in a one room, living on a diet of soup, and sandwiches.
He was thus forced to part with one of his prized mementos of his service to the country during WWII when he took the iconic photographed that was awarded one of the top photographs of the 20th Century "The Flag Raising on Mt. Surabachi" shortly after the final assault charge to the top of the mountain. The raising of the flag as the moment was captured by Rosenthal while the battle of Iwo Jima raged below three days after the U.S. Marines landed and assaulted Japanese positions first on the mountain and the beach area at the foot of the infamous Mt. Surabachi. As Secretary Forestall commented "...guaranteed the existence of the U.S. Marine Corp. for the next 500 years".
Over the next two days three of the "flag raisers" were killed during the battle as it shifted to the south part of the island thus leaving the legacy to be carried on and told by the two Marines and a USN corpsman remaining till they died of natural causes in the 1970's to early 2000s. Only Mr. Rosenthal's still photo and the film recorded by another photographer as they looked on.exist today to carry on that iconic moment.
Ben Zaricor had the good fortune in the 1990's to privately view and photograph the first of the two flags raised that day. The first flag was a smaller 28" X 54" raised by a different squad who first raised the flag before the second, larger flag 56" X 96" was frozen for all time on celluloid when it was raised by the sister squad, of the first flag raising squad, It was the second raising that was memorialized by the still photo of Rosenthal and the film of the second photographer who were told to "go up the mountain and see what you can get".
Exhibition History:
Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, New York, 1995 - 2007.
Provenance:
• Joe Rosenthal, 1945 to 1990s.
• Acquired by purchase by The War Museum, New York City, until 2013.
• Sold via Bonham's of New York City, NY to Zaricor Flag Collection, 2013.
(Formerly in the The War Museum - New York City Sub-collection.)
