An original 8.5x6.5" antique photo from a stunning and extensive collection of rare WW1 press photos that we acquired from an estate collection in London from a major auction house. It is an original silver gelatin photo. Professionally packaged in a rigid mailer for safe delivery.

Photo Overview

Two British officers in steel helmets stand behind a barbed wire entanglement on the slopes of the Montello ridge in northern Italy, one using field binoculars while the other looks on, surveying a long irrigation canal and flat Piave River plain stretching toward the town of Cornuda, with farm fields, scattered buildings and distant snow capped mountains visible under a hazy wartime sky. This official Great War press photograph, taken with the British forces on the Italian Front, captures a quiet moment of frontline observation from a defended position, emphasizing the landscape the Allies were fighting to hold.

The Montello sector and nearby Cornuda were key terrain on the Italian Front after the 1917 Battle of Caporetto, when British and French units were rushed in to help stabilize the line along the Piave River. In June 1918 the area saw heavy fighting during the Battle of the Piave, a decisive Allied victory that helped break the Austro Hungarian army and hasten the end of the war. Original British official images of this lesser known theater remain in strong demand among WW1 and Italy campaign collectors, so secure this scarce piece of history today before it disappears into another collection.

Text Present

Front: no text visible.

Back, printed label at top:
WITH THE BRITISH FORCES IN ITALY.
K.84. View from the Montello looking towards Cornuda.

Back, faint grey censor stamp:
PASSED FOR
W W
O6739
TRANSMISSION
ABROAD

Back, magenta agency stamp:
OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH
ISSUED BY
ASSOCIATED ILLUSTRATION AGENCIES, LTD.,
ST. MARY'S CHAMBERS, 161a. STRAND, LONDON, W.C.2.
PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE "BRITISH OFFICIAL" - CROWN COPYRIGHT RESERVED.
For PUBLICATION on or after............................

Print analysis: This is a British Official WW1 press photograph with contemporary agency and censor stamps on the reverse, consistent with gelatin silver prints supplied to newspapers during the war. The paper surface, ink style and the "For publication on or after" line strongly suggest a period press print made within a few years of exposure, so it is best classified as a Type 1 original, likely printed c1917-1918.

Condition: Photo is in fair to good condition. Please check photos for the most accurate condition. The back of the photo may have remnants from having been attached to an album page.