Metropolis (Wardour Films, 1927, UK), Brigitte Helm "Maria" 8" x 10" Original British Release Photo Lob...

Description

Metropolis (Wardour Films, 1927, UK), Brigitte Helm "Maria" 8" x 10" Original British Release Photo Lobby Card. PSA/DNA Type 1. Vintage semi-gloss double-weight 8" x 10" (trimmed from 9.25" x 11.75") British photo lobby card of Brigitte Helm as "Maria, Maschinenmensch, The Machine Man" in Metropolis, Fritz Lang's Expressionist masterpiece adapted from Thea von Harbou's novel, with NON-COPYRIGHT / WARDOUR FILMS LTD / PUBLICITY DEPT / 178 WARDOUR ST, W.1. / Tel.- REGENT 2533 wet stamp and paper caption, 23 SEP 1927 date stamp, and editorial annotation "Page 4" in graphite on the verso. Primary card featuring Maria the robot from the original UK release, printed in Germany at UFA. Centrally reproduced as the U.S. one-sheet poster (all examples presumed lost).

Caption: "Scene from the great film masterpiece "METROPOLIS"
Which is generally released on Monday Sept: 26th, and
is showing at nearly 60 theaters in London area alone."

Metropolis is widely regarded as the definitive silent science fiction film, pioneering dystopian visual language and cinematic special effects. The Maschinenmensch-played by Brigitte Helm-is perhaps the most iconic robotic image in film history, predating and influencing nearly every cinematic robot that followed. This UK-issued card, printed directly from UFA materials, is not to be confused with the later or inferior U.S. lithographic lobby cards. Its photographic clarity and studio provenance make it one of the rarest and most desirable visual artifacts from the film's original distribution. A museum-quality piece from a film that remains the cornerstone of cinematic modernism and science fiction iconography.

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