Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

September 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction

Sat, Sep 19, 2026 11:00AM EDT
  2026-09-19 11:00:00 2026-09-19 11:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : September 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/september-2026-vernacular-photo-history-auction-24380
Our September 2026 auction is anchored by two remarkable private collections, together making up about half the sale, alongside a broader selection of consignments spanning early photography, Civil War material, and vernacular imagery. The Soffer Collection, built with an eye for rarity and historical significance, is particularly strong in vernacular portraiture, Native American photographs, and Iowa Civil War imagery. The Palmer, Massachusetts collection, much of it found at Brimfield, centers on maker-marked daguerreotypes from the golden age of the American daguerreian studio.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 614

RPPC, Mexican Revolution Sharpshooters Behind Adobe Wall, c. 1910s

Estimate: $50 - $100
Starting Bid
$25

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $5
$100 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
A group of armed fighters takes firing positions behind a low adobe brick wall in this striking real photo postcard documenting combat action during the Mexican Revolution, circa the 1910s. Multiple men crouch and kneel along the wall with rifles and pistols raised, while a standing figure at the right corner of a ruined structure fires over the top. The postcard caption printed on the image face reads "Mexican Sharpshooters," placing this among the commercially produced battlefield documentation that circulated widely during the conflict.

The fighters wear wide-brimmed sombreros, bandolier-style ammunition gear, and dark field clothing. A figure in the foreground lies prone on the bare ground with a sombrero beside him, rifle at hand; additional men are visible at right behind what appears to be a canvas shelter. The surrounding structures are adobe, partially ruined, with exposed timber framing visible at the damaged roofline of the background building.

Real photo postcards of the Mexican Revolution were produced and sold in significant numbers along the U.S.-Mexico border during the 1910s, serving both journalistic and commercial purposes. This image, with its staged yet visceral composition of fighters in active firing positions, is representative of the genre and carries strong documentary appeal for collectors of Revolution-era militaria and border-region photography.

The reverse bears a standard undivided-style "POST CARD" printing with "CORRESPONDENCE HERE" and "NAME AND ADDRESS HERE" fields; the message and address areas are unused. Remnants of adhesive tape appear at all four corners.

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