Thérèse Castagno épouse Martin - Libération de Paris, semaine du 19 au 25 août 1944

Series of 7 black-and-white analog photographs, original and unique, taken by my mother, Thérèse Martin, born Castagno in 1928, a saleswoman at Bon Marché in 1944, who died on September 9, 2026.
These exceptional shots come from my mother's estate.
For a bit of history, my elderly mother, then 16 years old, climbed onto the Sherman tank to offer flowers to the liberators.
The paper used is Velox, a very common support at the time.
The format is 9 x 6 cm.
The date allows authenticating these photos (1944).
Five photographs were taken on Rue Bonaparte in Paris.
In these, barricades erected by the inhabitants and the FFI can be seen.
The butcher’s shop at 40 Rue Bonaparte, other buildings, and the people manning the barricade are clearly visible.
Two other photographs concern the arrival of the 2nd Armoured Division under General Leclerc.
One shot shows a Sherman tank belonging to this division.
The division’s official insignia is very clearly visible.
The tank photographed by my mother is the Mouchard, an M4A2 Sherman tank belonging to the 12th Regiment of African Chasseurs.
This tank participated in the June 1944 Normandy landings. It participated in the liberation of Alençon and in the fierce fighting of the Falaise Pocket.
Around August 24 and 25, it took part in the liberation of Paris.
Another shot shows two vehicles that participated in the Liberation of Paris.
It is a semi-tracked M3 Half-track towing a equipment trailer and a light M5 Stuart tank.
These shots are unique and found in a shoebox.
They will easily find their place among the archives of a collector passionate about the period and eager to possess unique documents.
Good used condition. A slight crease on one photo (the one with the two military vehicles).