1938 Horrors of War original artwork from high# unissued cards w/Chiang Kai-shek

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1938 Horrors of War original artwork from high# unissued cards w/Chiang Kai-shek:
$8500.00

BMW Sportscards - listing

Obtained directly from legendary nonsport collector and hobbyist, Tony Salamone, this brightly-colored original, hand-drawn line artwork was once part of George Moll's personal collection and archive. Executive George Moll was the advertising genius behind Gum Incorporated (later known as the Bowman Gum Company) and was intimately involved in arranging the artwork for many of the most important nonsport card series including Horrors of War, The Lone Ranger, and Superman.

Unlike the standard uniquepieces of original art, which each correspondedto aspecific pack-issued card and were intended for the general public, these six pieces of original artwork were never formally printed and distributed. It is even possible that these six pieces of original art were inadvertently lost or even forgotten during or after production. How else would six commissioned, meticulously crafted pieces of artwork remain unused?

The most likely theory is that Gum Incorporated had intended a final series of 24 additional cards (the standard series sheet was 4 cards by 6 cards or 24totalcards)andthe additional 18 required paintings were never completed. This theory is supported by the appearance of two paintings that clearly illustrate post-conflict fallout. Additional evidence supporting this contention is a third painting depicting dogfights between a Flagg Biplane and circa 1939 fixed-wing aircraft. This time period alsoneatly corresponds to the release of the high numbered series (HOW card numbers 265 to 288).

In contrast to known Horrors of War original artwork, which is often encountered in mediocre shape (worn, stained, and faded), these six miniature "paintings" are in pristine condition. A small area of light paper loss on the back of each indicates that they were once attached to a production board. For this particular card (SGC serial number 1116860-004) the overall size is 3-1/4" by 3-9/16" and the interior dimensions of the art are 2-5/16" by 2-7/8". Pictured is General Chiang Kai-shek, reviewing battle plans along the Xinqiang River in November of 1938 as the city of Changsha burns in the distance.

Each piece of artwork is a line drawing, colored with art pencil and an airbrush. While most of the artists commissioned by George Moll were anonymous, comic book hall of famer, Bernard "Bernie" Krigstein, created at least three renderings for this unissued series of six cards in order to earn extra money for college.

Front of Original Artwork

Back of Original Artwork

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