October 2023 Artwork Reveal

Today we're showing three pieces of artwork from our October 2023 series books! Let us know in the comments which books you'd like to see featured in our November 2023 Artwork Reveal!

Anglo-Saxon Kings and Warlords AD 400–1070

By Raffaele D’Amato and Stephen Pollington

Illustrated by Raffaele Ruggeri

‘OFFA’s DYKE’, LATE 8th CENTURY AD

(1) King Offa of Mercia
Offa is credited with ordering the construction of this impressive earthwork along the border between Mercia and the hostile Welsh kingdom of Powys. We reconstruct the king’s appearance as in his vigorous middle age, and his costume partly from the carvings on the Franks Casket. He wears a crimson ‘Phrygian’ cap, and a knee-length tunic. This shows pleats below the waist; hints of transverse folds on the forearm; gold brocade edging, including bands from the collar down the vent on the chest; and note a gold left arm-ring. His tight-fitting linen trousers are confined with tapes, each with a silver-gilt hooked tag fastening just below the knee, and he wears calf-length leather boots of Carolingian style. His short mantle in rich green silk is decorated with a repeat pattern, and is fastened at his right shoulder with a silver-gilt disc brooch. Slung from a leather belt with a long hanging strap-end is his scabbarded sword with a silver-gilt hilt, copied from the Fetter Lane specimen. (see photo, page 34)

(2) King Beorhtric of Wessex
To Offa’s left side stands his younger ally Beorhtric. He wears a blue cloak hanging open at the front to below his knees, copied from the Franks Casket; its silver disc brooch with small raised bosses is from the Evington specimen. His rich saffron-yellow tunic is, again, pleated below the waist. He holds a sword with a silver and gilt pommel, from a specimen found at Chiswick on the river Thames.

(3) West Saxon warlord
Between and behind the two kings, a warlord stands in attendance on Beorhtric. His helmet is a composite of the Coppergate and Wollaston specimens, in comparison with the Franks Casket. He is protected by a knee-length leather coat quilted with diamond-pattern stitching copied from the St John’s Bishopshill Cross, and a high collar. The bindings of his trousers would again have small silver fastening tags. His sword has a silver pommel with inlaid gilt panels (from the Windsor specimen), and at his feet is a shield with a ‘sugarloaf ’ boss (from British Museum specimen 1912, 1220.3). On campaign, he carries a finely mounted drinking horn as a sign of status.

Artwork requested by Daniel Figueroa Giraldez

Operation Pedestal 1942: The Battle for Malta’s Lifeline

By Angus Konstam

Illustrated by Graham Turner

HMS ITHURIEL RAMS THE COBALTO, 12 AUGUST 1942

The ramming of the Italian submarine Cobalto took place in broad daylight, after two British destroyers had depth-charged and damaged the submarine. As the Pedestal convoy moved on to the west, another destroyer, Ithuriel, arrived to take over the attack, as the first two destroyers rejoined the convoy screen. Ithuriel was an I-class destroyer built for the Turkish Navy, but was purchased by the Royal Navy in 1939.

Ithuriel hunted for the submarine using her sonar, and when contact was made, she carried out her own depth-charge attack. The crippled Italian submarine was forced to surface due to buoyancy tank damage, and bobbed up several hundred yards astern of the destroyer. The Ithuriel’s skipper promptly spun his ship around and charged at the surfaced submarine, firing her gun at the submarine as she went.

Here we see the Cobalto as she is about to be rammed amidships, on her starboard side just behind her damaged conning tower. The collision would make a large dent in the destroyer’s bow, but it would also break the pressure hull of the submarine, causing it to sink. Most of the Italian crew would make it off the boat and into the water.

Artwork requested by Adam C.

F4F Wildcat: South Pacific 1942–43

By Edward M. Young

Illustrated by Gareth Hector

MEDAL OF HONOR ACTION

At 1500 hrs on January 31, 1943, VMF-112 sent off two divisions of Wildcats to escort SBDs
and TBFs on a mission to bomb Japanese shipping in Vella Gulf, between Vella Lavella and
Kolombangara Islands north of Guadalcanal. Two F4Fs had to turn back, and the remaining
six split into two flights, with two aircraft climbing to provide high cover while 2Lt Jefferson
DeBlanc led four on as close escort.

As the dive-bombers finished their runs and regrouped for the return flight, they came under
attack from Type 0 Observation seaplanes. DeBlanc saw two “Petes,” flying in trail, closing
in on the SBDs. With his wingman, SSgt James Feliton, providing cover, DeBlanc attacked
the trailing floatplane, coming in from the “six o’clock” position and setting it on fire. DeBlanc
then went after the lead “Pete,” again from behind. He saw flames trailing from his target
following his first burst, after which the floatplane made a slow climbing turn to the right and
then exploded.

Despite being low on fuel, DeBlanc and Feliton remained with the SBDs, fending off attacks
from Zero-sens. DeBlanc claimed three of the fighters shot down before he was forced to bail
out of his badly damaged fighter. Feliton also had to take to his parachute. With aid from
coastwatchers and the Solomon Islands police force, both DeBlanc and Feliton returned to
Guadalcanal 13 days later. For his actions, DeBlanc was awarded the Medal of Honor.

• Artwork Reveal