Rare photographs of WWI German fighter pilot the Red Baron in action found in shoebox at British car boot sale
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•Photographs of Manfred von Richthofen flying in Germany 100 years ago
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•Barry Pickthall, 65, found 'extremely rare' collection at car boot sale
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•He said he felt like he had 'hit the jackpot' when he realsied what he'd found
Published: 13:30, 18 May 2014 | Updated: 22:53, 18 May 2014
Extremely rare photographs of World War I German fighter pilot The Red Baron have been found in a shoebox at a car boot sale.
The photographs of Manfred von Richthofen flying his triplane in Germany almost 100 years ago were discovered completely by accident by a keen eyed photographer who stumbled across them while looking to buy garden tools.
Barry Pickthall, 65, said he felt like he had 'hit the jackpot' when he saw what they were.
Rare photographs of legendary World War I German fighter ace The Red Baron flying his plane have been discovered at a car boot sale. Manfred von Richthofen (right) with his brother Lothar
A signed picture of the ace, taken around 1916. Manfred von Richthofen, in the cockpit of an Albatros. His signature appears beneath the photo
The fighter ace became known as The Red Baron for his preference for red-painted aircrafts and emerged as a top pilot with 80 air combat victories.
Mr Pickthall bought the historic photographs at the car boot sale in Ford Market near Littlehampton, West Sussex, for just £20 from a man who had just cleared his house.
But it was not until he studied the negatives under a magnifying glass that he saw that all the pictures came with captions and realised how special the pictures were.
Mr Pickthall, who owns the PPL Photo Agency in Walberton near Arundel, West Sussex, said he 'hit the jackpot' when he saw what they were.
He said: 'The collection was in a shoebox and it came from a house clearance where the pictures had been stored away for many years.
'I'm always on the hunt and lookout for for old pictures, but on this occasion I had just popped to a local car boot sale to buy garden tools.
'I saw this shoebox and I picked it up because I was fascinated by the amount of negatives that were inside.
'I had no idea what they showed or who was in the pictures, I just took the gamble and it certainly paid off.'
A seated portrait of Manfred von Richthofen in uniform. The photographs were discovered completely by accident by a keen eyed photographer
Herr Georg Michaelis, Imperial Chancellor from 13th July 1917 to 30th October 1917, talking to Captain Baron Manfred von Richthofen on the Somme Front
Von Richthofen (in front) and other Air Service personnel salute during the Kaisers visit to Courtrai
Mr Pickthall, from Chichester, West Sussex, was thrilled and surprised when he realised who was in the pictures.
He added: 'When I realised they were photographs of The Red Baron, I was delighted and extremely excited - it was like I had won the jackpot.
'He was the most famous flying ace of all time and he was definitely the most celebrated fighter pilots.
'Because I'm always looking for old pictures, I feel like a man with a metal detector, and this time it had felt like I had just found gold.
'The photographs are extremely rare and they must have been taken by somebody in the German Air Force.
Sopwith triplane single seater scout. Pilots nicknamed it the Tripehound or simply the Tripe. Barry Pickthall, 65, found the 'extremely rare' collection of 86 black and white negatives at a car boot sale while looking to buy garden tools
The coffin of Baron Manfred von Richthofen's is carried into the cemetery at Bertangles by six pilots of No.3 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps, 22 April 1918
Mr Pickthall bought the historic photographs at the car boot sale in Ford Market near Littlehampton, West Sussex, for just £20 from a man who had just cleared his house. But it was not until he studied the negatives under a magnifying glass that he saw that all the pictures came with captions and realised how special the pictures were
'It is all the more significant because July 28 marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War.'
Manfred von Richthofen was only 25 when he was killed in aerial combat.
But in his short two-year career as a fighter pilot, he established himself as a top air ace.
The negatives do not only show The Red Baron's flying career, but the planes and portraits of many of his American, British, French and German adversaries and comrades.
They include Lt Quentin Roosevelt, son of American president Theodore Roosevelt, who was shot down and killed on July 14, 1918.