A copy of Life magazine, 21 May 1945, signed by Winston S. Churchill, featuring the iconic portrait by Yousuf Karsh.
Churchill at the Moment of Victory — Signed 1945
An exceptional and highly evocative wartime artifact, combining one of the most famous photographic portraits of the twentieth century with Churchill’s autograph, dated 1945.
This issue of Life magazine, published on 21 May 1945, appeared immediately following Victory in Europe (VE Day), capturing Churchill at the height of his global authority and recognition.
The cover features Yousuf Karsh’s celebrated 1941 portrait—later known as The Roaring Lion—taken shortly after Churchill’s address to the Canadian Parliament. According to Karsh’s account, he removed Churchill’s cigar moments before the photograph was taken, provoking the defiant expression that would become one of the most enduring images of the Second World War.
The present example is signed boldly in ink on the lower cover, “Winston S Churchill 1945,” firmly anchoring the autograph to the historical moment represented by the publication itself.
Signed copies of this issue are rare, and examples dated contemporaneously in 1945 are particularly desirable. The combination of Karsh’s iconic image and Churchill’s signature transforms the magazine into a powerful historical object—uniting image, authorship, and moment in a single artifact of wartime memory.
Description
Folio format magazine, 21 May 1945 issue, with original printed wrappers featuring the Churchill cover portrait by Yousuf Karsh. Signed in ink to the lower cover, “Winston S Churchill 1945.” Light wear to edges and surface consistent with age; minor creasing and handling marks; overall in very good condition.
A copy of Life magazine, 21 May 1945, signed by Winston S. Churchill, featuring the iconic portrait by Yousuf Karsh.
Churchill at the Moment of Victory — Signed 1945
An exceptional and highly evocative wartime artifact, combining one of the most famous photographic portraits of the twentieth century with Churchill’s autograph, dated 1945.
This issue of Life magazine, published on 21 May 1945, appeared immediately following Victory in Europe (VE Day), capturing Churchill at the height of his global authority and recognition.
The cover features Yousuf Karsh’s celebrated 1941 portrait—later known as The Roaring Lion—taken shortly after Churchill’s address to the Canadian Parliament. According to Karsh’s account, he removed Churchill’s cigar moments before the photograph was taken, provoking the defiant expression that would become one of the most enduring images of the Second World War.
The present example is signed boldly in ink on the lower cover, “Winston S Churchill 1945,” firmly anchoring the autograph to the historical moment represented by the publication itself.
Signed copies of this issue are rare, and examples dated contemporaneously in 1945 are particularly desirable. The combination of Karsh’s iconic image and Churchill’s signature transforms the magazine into a powerful historical object—uniting image, authorship, and moment in a single artifact of wartime memory.
Description
Folio format magazine, 21 May 1945 issue, with original printed wrappers featuring the Churchill cover portrait by Yousuf Karsh. Signed in ink to the lower cover, “Winston S Churchill 1945.” Light wear to edges and surface consistent with age; minor creasing and handling marks; overall in very good condition.
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