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Winston Churchill. Typed letter signed ("Winston S. Churchill") with Romeo y Julieta "Churchill" cigar. ...
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$6,250.00
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Description
Winston Churchill. Typed letter signed ("Winston S. Churchill") with Romeo y Julieta "Churchill" cigar. 1 page, (7.5 x 9.5 inches), "10, Downing Street" [London], January 20, 1952, to Jose de Rivera. On "10, Downing Street, Whitehall" stationery with embossed seal of the Prime Minister. Smoothed folds, lightly rubbed, holed at upper left. Cigar is encased in plastic tube with light, expected wear. Case contains a label which reads, "Lino".Winston Churchill thanks a fellow artist for ensuring a shipment of his personalized cigars reached him.
"It gives me much pleasure to receive the cigars from Mr. Giraudier and I would like you to accept my thanks for your kindness and trouble in seeing that this gift reaches me."
A grateful Churchill thanks artist Jose de Rivera for facilitating the most recent shipment from Giraudier to him. Churchill writes, in full:
"Dear Mr. de Rivera,
Thank you so much for your letter. It gives me much pleasure to receive the cigars from Mr. Giraudier and I would like you to accept my thanks for your kindness and trouble in seeing that this gift reaches me safely.
With every good wish I am,
yours sincerely,
Winston S. Churchill"
The letter is accompanied by 6.75-inch cigar with a label affixed at one end that reads, "Romeo Y Julieta / Churchill / Habana". The image of Winston Churchill with a cigar in hand is practically ubiquitous to the famous Prime Minister. Throughout World War II and continuing on up until his death, he was constantly inundated with gifts of cigars from a grateful populace. However, it was the Romeo y Julieta Cigars (established in 1875) that became Churchill's preferred brand in the 1940s. So much so that following Churchill's February 1946 visit to Miami and Cuba, the larger Romeo y Julieta cigar favored by him was rechristened the "Churchill." It was during this visit he met the wealthy beer baron, Antonio Giraudier, and the two men struck up a friendship. Accessing his cigars proved difficult in post-war Britain as the import ban on luxury goods was still in effect, so Giraudier took it upon himself to become Churchill's private cigar supplier. Churchill was known to have gifted several of his paintings to Giraudier over the years, and in return, Giraudier ensured the Prime Minister had a steady stream of the brand up until the latter's death in 1965, even after rising tensions in Cuba forced Giraudier and his family to flee to America in 1960. Churchill's private secretary, Sir Anthony Montague Browne, once remarked, "The cigars of Antonio Giraudier were the core of Churchill's collection. Sir Winston took great delight in them." Accompanying the lot is a black and white photograph of a relaxed Churchill, cigar in hand, from his 1946 visit to Miami. It measures 6.5 x 8.5 inches and features a Miami Beach News Bureau backstamp.
Reference: Churchill's Cigar. London: Macmillan, 2007. Page 132.
Auction Info
2022 May 7 Treasures from the Melvin "Pete" Mark, Jr. Collection Signature® Auction #6256 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
May, 2022
7th
Saturday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 8
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
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