Two original hand-tinted color photographs of Josephine Baker, circa 1950s

Josephine Baker (subject)
Henry C. Bovet (photographer)

N.p. N.p., Circa 1950s. Two vintage matte-finish, hand-tinted color photographs of Josephine Baker performing onstage in Lausanne, Switzerland, circa 1950s. Both photos signed in manuscript pencil by photographer Henry C. Bovet on the bottom right corner, with the additional notation "Lausanne."

Baker moved to France in 1925, where she quickly gained success as an erotic dancer and actress, starring in several films throughout the 1930s, including "Zouzou" (1935) and "Princesse Tam-Tam" (1935). When France entered into World War II in 1939, Baker was recruited by the Deuxieme Bureau, a branch of French military intelligence, and became an "honorable correspondent." The actress gathered information about German troop locations, housed members of the Free French effort and helped them access visas, and carried secret Allied transmissions throughout Europe while ostensibly touring as an entertainer. Baker was awarded the Croix de guerre and the Rosette de la Resistance for her bravery, and in 1945 was named a Chevalier de Legion d'honneur, the highest order of merit for military and civil action.

Photographs 5 x 7 inches, with wide margins, measuring 9 x 12 inches in total. Near Fine, with faint soil and a few pieces of old cello tape on the top edges.


[Book #151264]