Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

2026 European Photography Auction

Wed, Oct 28, 2026 01:00PM EDT
  2026-10-28 13:00:00 2026-10-28 13:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : 2026 European Photography Auction https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/2026-european-photography-auction-24401
Our October auction focuses on historic European photography, we are offering a curated collection of fine and erotic daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, CDV, cabinet cards, stereoviews, and a range of curious and uncommon nineteenth-century European vernacular material. At the center of the sale is a collection of images from the Paris Commune of 1871 and the surrounding “année terrible,” the year of war, siege, insurrection, and reprisal that reshaped France. The focus is on the people who drove those events and lived through their aftermath, and on the city that bore the damage.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 129

Stereoview, Gymnastics Competition, 1900 Paris Exposition, S.I.P.

Estimate: $100 - $200
Starting Bid
$10

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 gymnastics competition at the 1900 Paris Exposition Universelle fills this gelatin silver stereoview, number 90 in a series produced by the Société Industrielle de Photographie, known as S.I.P. The view was made at the Vincennes velodrome, the dedicated venue for gymnastics within the exposition grounds, and the image dates precisely to 1900. The card belongs to a series of stereoscopic views documenting the Exposition Universelle of 1900.

Scores of gymnasts in white uniforms and dark caps are distributed across a broad lawn, clustered around two tall ladder apparatus standing upright at the center of the field. Pavilion structures adorned with flags and pennants line the far side of the grounds, where packed spectator stands are visible beneath the roofline. Mature trees frame the upper edges of both frames, and smaller figures in civilian dress are scattered throughout the foreground, lending a sense of the large crowd in attendance.

Gymnastics was among the competitive disciplines held at the 1900 Paris Olympics, with events taking place on July 29 and 30, 1900. The French delegation numbered 108 of the 135 total competitors and swept all three medals on offer. The scholastic gymnastics competitions and the festival competition of Paris primary schools were held within the exposition enclosure at the Bois de Vincennes.

Printed in white ink along the lower margin of the left frame: "90 EXPOⁿ 1900. CONCOURS DE GYMNASTIQUE. S.I.P." Reverse bears pencil notations "XE370" and "#18.00" in the upper left corner.

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We ship for free on combined lot values of $500 or higher in the United States. We will be traveling to Paris November 8-14th and can deliver any of our items at Paris Photo or the show on Saturday.