Kurt Zwar Photograph Collection
Contents of the Collection
The collection is comprised of forty-two (42) black-and-white photographs depicting aircraft and military personnel of World War I and World War II. The photographs were purchased by Zwar; no personal connection to the subjects of the photographs is known. There is also one piece of ephemera, a "Smileage Book" which holds ration coupons for "military entertainments."
The photographs vary in size, from 3x5 to 6x8". They feature WWI and WWII aircraft, in the ground, in flight, and a few depict aircraft accidents. Other images show military personnel, near or around aircraft as well as some casual snapshots and portraits without aircraft. Most of the photographs do not include any kind of caption or contextual information, although there are a few that do. One image has a caption in German and two other photographs have French captions. All other identification is in English.
Identified aircraft include a Gotha LD6, Sablatnig SF 7, and Fokker D.VIII. Identified people include Georges Guynemer, a French World War I fighter ace; one person is identified as "Dad." Many photographs include stamps and numbers, such as "Airbooks - Reproduction Forbidden." One image is noted as being taken by Edgar Deigen, however the photographer for the bulk of the images is unknown.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1910s-1940s
Language of Materials
One photograph has a caption in German and two photographs have captions in French. All other materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research and is accessible in the Dahlberg Research Center by appointment. For more information contact us.
Conditions Governing Use
The Museum of Flight (TMOF) Archives is the owner of the physical materials in the archives and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from TMOF archives before any publication use. TMOF does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners. Consult repository for more details.
Extent
0.05 Cubic Feet (1 letter size folder)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated by Kurt Zwar who purchased most of the material via auction websites.
Separated Materials
There is a large amount of material which has been separated from the archival component and is kept in Objects storage, including twenty (20) World War I and World War II uniforms and accessories, such as pins, medals, and religious pendants. For more information contact us.
Processing Information
The photographs arrived in no discernible order. The archivist has loosely arranged them under two topics; aircraft only and people (with or without aircraft).
Subject
- Canada. Royal Canadian Air Force (Organization)
- Great Britain. Royal Flying Corps (Organization)
- Guynemer, Georges, 1894-1917 (Person)
- Deigan, Edgar (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Kurt Zwar Photograph Collection
- Status
- Completed Level 2
- Author
- J.Parent
- Date
- 2019
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
- Edition statement
- 1st edition
Repository Details
Part of the The Museum of Flight Archives Repository
9404 East Marginal Way South
Seattle Washington 98108-4097
206-764-7874
curator@museumofflight.org