Desert Warrior - Limited Edition
A Bf 109 from I./JG27 near their base in north-east Libya
Desert Warrior © Robert Taylor
Desert Warrior © Robert Taylor
Description
‘Desert Warrior’ by Robert Taylor is a small, previously unreleased aviation art print. It was painted by Robert in 1986, a period of his career that included some of his most famous Luftwaffe pieces such as JG-52 (1986), Ace of Aces (1988), Swansong (1988), The Abbeville Boys (1989), Stuka (1990) and Gathering Storm (1990). Robert fittingly depicts a Messerschmitt Bf 109 from I./JG27 near their base in north-east Libya, a small dusty village near the coast called Ain el-Gazala, from which they were tasked to protect the Ju87 Stukas attacking the encircled British army in Tobruk, just 40 miles away.
Editions
Assigned to support the 'Africa Corps, I./JG27 was under the command of Eduard Neumann, one of the most respected Luftwaffe fighter leaders of World War 2. The Gruppe was made up of veterans who’d taken part in the French campaign and the Battle of Britain so it didn’t take long for Neumann’s pilots to make their presence felt; on their first combat mission from Ain el-Gazala on 19 April they claimed the destruction of four RAF Hurricanes and in the process notched up the Gruppe’s 100th victory of the war so far.
With the arrival of the rest of the Gruppe from Russia at the end of 1941, JG27 would spend the next year defending Rommel’s front line in North Africa, their name indelibly linked to the Western Desert. And it was here that Neumann would mentor Hans-Joachim Marseilles who, awarded the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds, scored all but seven of his 158 victories in the Western Desert to become one of the highest-scoring Luftwaffe Aces in history.
Editions
- 650 Limited Edition, signed by the artist and four highly respected Luftwaffe Aces who flew Bf109s with JG27 in the desert:
Oberst EDUARD NEUMANN - 11 victories
Ambassador FRANZ ELLES - 5 victories
Generalmajor FRIEDRICH KÖRNER - 36 victories
Hauptmann FRITZ KELLER - 13 victories - 65 Artist's Proofs, signed as above
- 50 Matted Collector's Edition
Each signed print is issued conservation matted to include the original autographs of a further Luftwaffe Ace who flew in Africa during WWII:
Major ERICH RUDORFFER - 222 victories - 15 Remarques, signed as above
With the serious collector in mind, these two very exclusive editions will include a hand-crafted original pencil drawing by Robert Taylor. Each exquisite remarque drawing will be individually created on a separate sheet of paper and delicately set into the conservation matting with all components of the Collector’s Edition to create a completely unique piece
. - 10 Double Remarques (subject to availability), signed as above
with a much larger and even more elaborate drawing – collectors have the opportunity to acquire a highly sought after original work by the world’s most collected aviation artist.
Published January 2019
Overall Height ca.
34
cm
Overall Width ca.
46
cm
