LONDON (AFP) – A collection of thousands of letters, papers and photos relating to Indian independence icon Mahatma Gandhi be auctioned in Britain next month, auction house Sotheby’s said Wednesday.

The archive belonged to Gandhi’s close friend Hermann Kallenbach, a German Jewish bodybuilder and architect, who became his constant companion after they met in Johannesburg in 1904.

Among the items for sale are 287 photos featuring the two men and a small number of previously unpublished letters exchanged between them.

Most of the correspondence, which spans five decades from 1905 to 1945, is from family, friends and followers of Gandhi, but there are also 13 letters written by him to Kallenbach.

They are expected to fetch more than £500,000 ($780,000, 620,000 euros).

Gabriel Heaton, Sotheby’s deputy director and specialist of books and manuscripts, said: “This extraordinarily rich archive is a testament to Kallenbach’s significance in Gandhi’s life as a key member of his inner circle, and is richly informative of the important friendship between the two men, making it a key biographical source for Gandhi.”

Several letters from Kallenbach to Gandhi voice his growing concern about the rise of Nazism and the plight of his fellow Jews in Europe.

Historian Ramchandra Guha discovered the letters at the home of Isa Sarid, the grand-niece of Kallenbach, the Times of India reported.

The newspaper said the Indian government had tried to buy the papers from Kallenbach’s descendants in Israel but had reportedly failed to agree on a price.

Several artifacts are also for sale as part of the collection, including a flag and homespun cotton scarf given by Gandhi to Kallenbach.

The friendship between the two men was the subject of a controversial book published last year, which suggested they had an intimate relationship.

The archive is expected to fetch between £500,000 and £700,000 when it goes under the hammer on July 10, Sotheby’s said.

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YORK, Pa. – With billions of dollars flowing into the election coffers of our 2012 presidential candidates, a look back at how our country’s forefathers got their message out to voters provides us with a fascinating history lesson on politics. Leading flag expert Jeff Bridgman, who builds collections for many titans of industry, owns many of the most important and beautiful political campaign flags and banners known to exist today.

“They all serve as historical documentation of the men who sought our nation’s highest office,” says Bridgman, who will be offering these historical treasures at art and antique fairs this June, July and August in Litchfield County, Conn.; Aspen, Colo.; Nantucket, Mass.; and Baltimore, Md. (see schedule below for details). “People are often surprised to learn that before 1912, the lack of a specific design for the American national flag left a great deal open to interpretation and imagination.”

According to Bridgman, American presidential candidates began using the red, white, and blue as a medium for printed campaign advertising as early as 1840. “The first on record were made for William Henry Harrison, who served the shortest term ever as our commander-in-chief,” says Bridgman. “Though he contracted pneumonia at his inaugural speech and died just 30 days later, this beloved American figure unknowingly left behind some of the most extraordinary American flags known to exist.” Thus, began a 65-year term in American history, during which it was perfectly acceptable for seekers of American political office to place their names, faces and platform slogans on the much-loved symbol of our nation. And the cost of these campaign banners ranged from $1.50 to $5.

From 1840 onward, other banners made of cotton and silk were also raised to advertise political elections. These are still in use today. Among early examples, some were hand-painted and others were printed on fabric. Many are vividly graphic with portraits, patriotic verbiage and imagery.

Here are some highlights from Jeff Bridgman’s collection of rare and important political banners, which he will offer this summer:

– Rare portrait style bandanna, made for the 1848 presidential campaign of Zachary Taylor, the only surviving textile in this style and the plate example from the book Threads of History.

Of all American presidents represented in campaign textiles, one of the most desired is Gen. Zachary Taylor, who ran and won the White House as a Whig in 1848 following the conclusion of the Mexican War. No campaign parade flags are known from this year for any of the three primary participants, which included Democrat opponent Lewis Cass and Free Soil party candidate Martin Van Buren. No bandanas are known from either the Cass or Van Buren campaigns in that year, which means that the only large-scale patriotic textiles are those used by Taylor and his supporters (asking price: $38,500).

– 1864 Lincoln and Johnson presidential campaign parade flag, recycled from an 1860 John Bell, Constitutional Union Party flag, with 35 stars arranged in a unique variant of a “pentagon” or “heart” medallion.

This 35 star American national parade flag, printed on glazed cotton, was originally made for the 1860 presidential campaign of John Bell & Edward Everett, who ran as independents on the Constitutional Union Party ticket. Abraham Lincoln was a great recycler of campaign flags. In 1864, while seeking reelection, his supporters sewed his name and that of Andrew Johnson over those of Bell & Everett. Bell’s 1860 slogan, “The Union and the Constitution,” is printed across the last white stripe. In 1864, the main faction of the Republican Party formed a coalition with “War Democrats” (those against the Southern cause) and temporarily renamed itself the National Union Party. For this reason Bell’s slogan was particularly fitting and so left intact (asking price: $87,500).

– A rare 34-star parade flag made for the 1880 presidential campaign of Garfield and Arthur, the largest example known from this election.

This 34-star American national parade flag, printed on coarse, glazed cotton, was made for the 1880 presidential campaign of James A. Garfield and Chester Arthur. This particular flag is presently the only known example in this exact style. Measuring approximately 28 x 43 inches, it also happens to be the largest known campaign parade flag that has survived from the 1880 election. Larger flags like this were evidently produced in smaller numbers. Because they were more difficult to store and more likely to be damaged over time, logic suggests that they were also more readily discarded. Generally speaking, larger political flags are more desirable because they are simultaneously a lot more rare and provide more graphic impact. Unlike 19th century flags with pieced-and-sewn construction, the very largest examples do not exceed 5 feet in length (asking price: $25,000).

– Pair of exceptionally graphic and colorful kerchiefs from the 1904 presidential campaign of Theodore Roosevelt vs. Alan Parker.

Often, one maker produced some political bandanas in the same style for two opposing candidates. In this case a similar, yet different example, each just as colorful and embellished as the next, was made for each of the two major political parties’ campaigns. Printed on cotton, this complementary pair was produced for the 1904 election when Republicans Theodore Roosevelt and Charles Warren Fairbanks ran and won against Democrats Alan Brooks Parker and Henry Gassaway Davis. It could be successfully argued that there are not two more striking, colorful or more patriotically whimsical kerchiefs in all of political textile collecting. From a purely graphics standpoint, this pair is short-listed among the very best of all those known to exist (asking price: $14,500).

According to Bridgman, toward the end of the 19th century, there was a growing shift in public opinion to uphold the Stars and Stripes as a sacred object, worthy of the most scrupulous ethics regarding its use and display. Attempts were made to ban the use of the flag for advertising in 1890 and 1895, but it was not until the year 1905 that Congress finally decreed that the use of text or portraits on official insignia of the United States would afterwards be outlawed, marking the end of an era where politicians sought to woo their constituency with bold and whimsical versions of Old Glory.

Jeff R. Bridgman will appear at the following shows:

• Litchfield County Antiques Show, www.antiquescouncil.com, June 22-24;
• Aspen Antiques and Fine Arts Fair, www.aspenartfairs.com, July 6-15;
• Nantucket Historical Association Antiques Show, www.antiquescouncil.com, Aug. 2-6;
• Baltimore Summer Antiques Show, www.baltimoresummerantiques.com, Aug. 23-26.

For more information, visit www.jeffbridgman.com or phone 717-502-1281.

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