Postcard signed and inscribed by French war artist Pierre Bertrand c1917-20s

BERTRAND, Pierre Philippe (1884-1975). La faim! Printed postcard depicting a Romanian prisoner of war at Mannheim, with an autograph inscription signed by the artist, [undated but near contemporary to 1917 dated sketch].
 
Original illustrated postcard, 95x145mm, reproducing Bertrand's drawing of a Romanian prisoner holding a bowl, captioned "Roumain (Muntenia)", with the artist's printed signature and "Camp de Mannheim, 1917" at the foot. Inscribed and signed in black ink along the right-hand margin. Unused divided reverse. Light toning and marking, with minor corner wear. Very good.
 
Bertrand adds: "Un de mes malheureux ex-compagnons de captivite!" ("One of my unfortunate former fellow prisoners!"), followed by his signature. The inscription is undated; 1917 is the date of the reproduced drawing and this card looks near contemporary to that.
 
Captured in December 1915, Bertrand was imprisoned at Mannheim, where he drew portraits of fellow prisoners, including this Romanian soldier. This design was issued as a postcard to raise funds for prisoners of war. An example without the autograph addition, in the Calin Hentea collection, is reproduced in Radu Tudorancea's study of international assistance to Romanian prisoners, p.534, fig.6. That example has a printed acknowledgment to donors on the reverse, whereas the present card has a plain correspondence reverse.
 
Bertrand subsequently became an official painter to the French Navy in 1936. A personally inscribed example and because of this, a rarity.