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Voyage
Into Destiny
Robert Taylor
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| Leaving
the port of Gdynia on May 18, 1941, two large German warships
stealthily zigzagged their way up the coast of Norway at the
outset of what was to become one of the shortest, most fiercely
fought naval contests of the Second World War. "Operation
Rheinubung" was under way. With Fleet Commander Admiral
Lutjens on the bridge, the brand new battleship Bismarck
would leave the relative safety of the Norwegian fjords, destined
for the busy shipping lanes in the Atlantic. After
refueling, and in company with the battlecruiser Prinz
Eugen, on May 21 the two heavily armed warships headed
for the Denmark Strait and out into wide expanse of the Atlantic.
Bound for the active convoy routes, Bismarck
would play havoc with vital Allied merchant shipping. Faster
than almost any warship afloat, the magnificent new 42,000
ton monster's awesome firepower would prove no match for the
lightly protected merchantmen or their escorts, as they laboriously
plied their desperately needed cargo across the ocean towards
Europe. It seemed she was invincible.
Within three days of sailing, Bismarck's
first encounter was a triumph! Intercepted south west of Iceland
by the British Home Fleet, the German battleship's gunners
went into action for the first time, their second and third
salvos striking the battlecruiser Hood.
She exploded and sank in three minutes. But Bismarck's
success brought the wrath of the Royal Navy upon her and just
three days later, on morning of May 27, with her rudder damaged
by a torpedo, the pride of the German Navy fell to the guns
of the British Home Fleet. Outnumbered, she fought bravely,
but succumbed, the magnificent new battleship's active war
lasting less than a week.
Robert Taylor's atmospheric painting
shows Bismarck
off the coast of Norway at the start of "Operation Rheinubung".
Under the watchful eye of Jagdeschwader 77's Me109 fighters,
in company with the battlecruiser Prinz
Eugen, and destroyers Hans
Lody and Z23, Germany's magnificent
new battleship Bismarck
is seen maneuvering near Korsfjord Bergen on May 21, 1941.
That evening, with Prinz Eugen,
she will leave for Arctic waters, the Denmark Strait, the
Atlantic, and destiny. Within days the pride of the German
Kriegsmarine will have passed into history.
Joining celebrated artist Robert Taylor
in hand-signing each print in pencil, every copy is authenticated
by two highly respected Luftwaffe pilots who flew in the Norwegian
Theater, together with a veteran survivor from the battleship
Bismarck.
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Overall Print
size: 34 1/2" wide x 24" high.
Image size: 27 5/8" wide x 16"
high.
A testimony to Bismarck and "Operation
Rheinubung" - one of the briefest yet most remarkable
naval episodes of World War Two.
| Voyage
Into Destiny by Robert
Taylor |
| The
Veterans Edition with three
signatures. |
| 500 s/n prints w/THREE
signatures. |
US $900 |
 |
| 10 Artist's Proofs w/THREE
signatures. |
US $1250 |
|
The
Commemorative Proofs with
five signatures.
Issued
with matching numbered drawing "The Fatal Blow". |
| 50 Commemorative Proofs. |
Sold Out |
| 25 Commemorative Proof Remarques. |
Sold Out |
| The Studio Proofs |
| 1 - 150 w/SIX signatures. |
US $1000 |
|
| 1 - 50 w/EIGHT signatures. |
Sold Out |
Commemorative Proofs Companion
Print
The Fatal Blow
Swordfish BI-planes deliver the fatal
blow to the battleship Bismarck
late in the evening of 26 May, 1941. Braving intense fire,
the navy pilots released torpedoes from close range, scoring
two direct hits - one jamming both rudders of the mighty battleship.
From that moment Bismarck was
doomed. Unable to steer, it was only a matter of time before
the British Home Fleet closed in to take revenge for the sinking
of the Hood. The following
morning the pride of the German Kriegsmarine was reduced to
a mass of twisted steel, and in less than two hours Bismarck
rolled over and sank. Robert Taylor's superb drawing shows
a Swordfish from the carrier HMS Ark
Royal laying a torpedo that will cripple the Bismarck.
Every copy of 'The Fatal Blow' will
be individually hand-signed in pencil by TWO Swordfish aircrew
who flew in combat during World War Two, together with the artist
Robert Taylor. |
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The
Veterans Edition Signers
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 Hauptmann
Hugo Dahmer
Hugo Dahmer scored his first victory
in May 1940 when he was a young Unteroffizier with 6./JG26
on the Channel front., and was one of II Gruppes most successful
pilots. In February 1941 he transferred to 1./JG77 in Norway,
later re-named JG5 and was awarded the Knight's Cross in this
northern theater in August 1941. Briefly rejoining JG26 again
on the Channel Front in December 1942, he transferred to III./JG2
in early 1943. In October of that year he was seriously wounded
and withdrew from active combat, becoming a top instructor
specializing in R4/M Rockets. Awarded the Knight's Cross,
he flew a total of 307 combat missions and scored 57 victories.
 Oberleutnant
Ernst Scheufele
Joining the Luftwaffe in October
1940, Ernst Scheufele went straight into pilot training. On
gaining his wings he was posted, in June 1942, to 4./JG5 in
Norway. There, flying the Messerschmidt Bf109, he carried
out a total 67 escort missions for the Bismarck and Prinz
Eugen, and later for the Tirpitz. In October 1943 he joined
II./JG5, flying over Arctic waters, in Finland, and on the
Russian Front, before transferring in June 1944 to defense
of the Reich. On 3 December 1944 he was shot down by an American
flak battery near Saxony, wounded and taken prisoner. He had
scored a total of 18 victories.
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 Stoker
1st Class Otto Peters
Born in Hamburg in 1919, Otto Peters
joined the Kriegsmarine in April 1939, and attended the Naval
Training School at Kiel. Posted to Bismarck in April 1941,
he was one of the first to join the crew at the Blohm and
Voss shipyard in his hometown of Hamburg. As a leading stoker,
engineer Otto was on fire-watch when he heard over Bismarck's
internal radio that the Royal Navy had "undertaken all
necessary efforts to sink the Bismarck", and recalls
that he knew at once that their days were numbered. As Bismarck
went down, Otto was one of the piteously few survivors to
be rescued, being picked up by the cruiser HMS Dorsetshire.
There were only 115 survivors, well over 2000 of his shipmates
had perished. He spent the remainder of the war in captivity.
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The
Studio Proofs Edition Signers
Joining artist Robert Taylor in hand-signing
each print in pencil, every Studio Proof is authenticated by
a highly respected Luftwaffe Ace who flew in the Norwegian and
Polar Theaters, together with FIVE veteran survivors from the
battleship Bismarck. In addition print numbers 1 - 50 are signed
by a further two signatories. |
Print numbers 1 - 150 are signed
by:
The Bismarck Survivors:
Matrosenbergefreiter
Karl Kuhn
Maschinenobergefreiter
Otto Peters (see
above bio)
Maschinemaat Heinz
Steeg
 Matrosengefreiter
Willi Treinis
Willi was called up into the
Kreigsmarine in 1940. After training he was posted
to join his first and only ship, the Bismarck, where
he served in the ship's 15cm artillery and ammunition
magazine, until she was sunk on 27 May, 1941. One
of a tiny handful of men from the magazines to survive,
Willi spent teh remainder of the war as a P.O.W.
Matrosengefreiter
Walter Weintz
together with
 Oberleutnant
Walter Schuck
After a spell with JG3 in
1940 Walter Schuck was posted to 7./JG5, arriving
at Petsamo on the Arctic Front in April 1942. By April
1943 he had collected 54 aerial victories. On 17 March
1944 he brought down 17 bombers and in April of that
year was awarded the Knights Cross with his tally
standing at 84. On 15 June 1944 he chalked up his
100th victory during a day when he shot down 6 aircraft.
Two days later he had his most successful day, achieving
12 victories in twenty-four hours, a feat never surpassed
in JG5. On 1 August he assumed command of 10./JG5.
December 1944 was a black month for JG5 when the Tirpitz
was sunk and their Kommodore,
Heinrich Ehrler, was made a scapegoat for the disaster.
He later transferred to fly the Me262 as Staffelkapitän
of 3./JG7, and achieved 8 further victories flying
the new jet. His final tally was 206 air victories
and had been awarded the Knights Cross with Oak Leaves.
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In addition
Print numbers 1 - 50 are also signed by:
Bismarck Survivor:
Matrosengefeiter Johann
Hellwig
together with
Oberleutnant
Ernst Scheufele
Joining the Luftwaffe in October
1940, Ernst Scheufele went straight into pilot training.
On gaining his wings he was posted, in June 1942, to
4./JG5 in Norway. There, flying the Messerschmidt Bf109,
he carried out a total 67 escort missions for the Bismarck
and Prinz Eugen, and later for the Tirpitz. In October
1943 he joined II./JG5, flying over Arctic waters, in
Finland, and on the Russian Front, before transferring
in June 1944 to defense of the Reich. On 3 December
1944 he was shot down by an American flak battery near
Saxony, wounded and taken prisoner. He had scored a
total of 18 victories. |
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