The Vampires (1910), Harpers Weekly, page 18 by Dart
Artist: Harry Grant Dart (All)
107 Views - 19 Comments - 20 Likes
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Framed
Published page
Harpers Weekly cover, December 31, 1910
Cover illustration by Harry Grant Dart for magazine The All-Story, October 1908
Artwork Details
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DescriptionHarpers Weekly of December 31, 1910. Amazing that it's over 100 years old and in great condition. It's the oldest piece in my collection.Gouache on board, 23-1/4x16 inches. With frame 35x28 inches. It came in the frame, which I think is perfect. It's hung on a wall where I can look at it throughout the day. Its depiction of then-futuristic planes attacking warships is in the World War I gallery as a precursor to the war's air battles. Harry Grant Dart (1869-1938) was a freelance illustrator for magazines such as Harper's Weekly, Life, and Judge. The future of flight intrigued him, inspiring him to draw complex illustrations of intricate flying machines and future cities. At the same time, he was art editor for The World newspaper. He created the newspaper strip "The Explorigator," competing with Winsor McCay's "Little Nemo" in the New York Herald. The Explorigator was a fantastic airship that traveled the universe captained by Admiral Fudge with a group of friends of his age of nine or ten. (Lambiek, "The Illustrator in America: 1860-2000" by Walt Reed) Historical note: The history of aerial bombing can be traced to early history where various cultures developed myths of flying gods and deities, some of whom such as Zeus threw thunderbolts from on high at earthbound humans. Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" (1726) describes the King of the flying island of Laputa bombarding enemies and rebellious subjects with heavy rocks thrown from the air. "The Wicked Prince" by Hans Christian Andersen (1840) has perhaps the first detailed fictional depiction of what is now called an Air Force. (Wikipedia) H. G. Wells grasped the full implications of aerial combat and air power and how it would revolutionize warfare in his 1907 book "The War in the Air." It predicted devastating strategic bombing of cities or how bombing from the air would make surface dreadnoughts obsolete in naval warfare, which only came about in World War II rather than the first which broke out in 1914. (Wikipedia) First use of airplanes in combat was not in World War I but during the Italo-Turkish War in 1911, the year after the Harper's Weekly illustration, with Italy using them for bombing. (Matt Kennedy email, Wikipedia) Social/Sharing |
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Comments on this Artwork
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M L 
Member Since 2015
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Wow! This is absolutely incredible, Peter. I can imagine how every time you see it a new story comes to mind about this intense scene. Really fantastic, congrats!
James S
Member Since 2017
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Epic scene! The fact the battle is at night and you still have so much detail is impressive.
Hart R.
Member Since 2004
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Fantastic addition to your collection Peter!!! Seeing you hold it up on the show was wild...such a huge size and all framed up!!! Congrats on scoring this 1910 gem!
Kavi H
Member Since 2018
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Very nice old school (115 years old!! wow, really old school!) magazine illustration, and damn that's a massive piece! It looks amazing presented in that frame, enjoy it for years to come - congrats Peter!
John C
Member Since 2014
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Does tieing cannolis to balloons and releasing them count as bombing? Asking for a friend.
Lee Harmon
Member Since 2020
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Special piece in your collection. I too have always enjoyed seeing how artists in the past predicted our future. It adds such a unique element to this fabulous art. He got so much correct. One could only describe this as both ahead of its time and now timeless. Thanks for choosing to share this gem first on Ruben's show and again here with us on CAF!
Marcus Wai
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
A great history lesson accompanies this of early aviation and what destructive potential it holds. The ships are powerless to defend against something this new that brings death from above. It's painted in such an advanced manner as well with these sharp focused linework and fantastic texture of the tides. The plane designs might as well have been from aliens with how advanced they look.
Ruben DaCollector
Member Since 2008
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
A magnificent scene which appears of its time, yet simultaneously modern and futuristic! Having taken a closer, longer look at it, I know see that the ship otself does look somewhat older than it appeared at first glance, as I hadn't initially noticed that it had three of those chimney stacks. Still, the shape of the bow still looks way too modern for it's time, which I suppose adds to the feeling of futurism after you look up and see the type of aircraft that are flying around! So great to know you won this and even greater to see how giddy and excited you were to show it to everyone live on Sunday! So much fun! Kudos, Peter!
Peter Roe
Member Since 2009
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Ruben DaCollector wrote:
A magnificent scene which appears of its time, yet simultaneously modern and futuristic! Having taken a closer, longer look at it, I know see that the ship otself does look somewhat older than it appeared at first glance, as I hadn't initially noticed that it had three of those chimney stacks. Still, the shape of the bow still looks way too modern for it's time, which I suppose adds to the feeling of futurism after you look up and see the type of aircraft that are flying around! So great to know you won this and even greater to see how giddy and excited you were to show it to everyone live on Sunday! So much fun! Kudos, Peter!
Thanks, Rubén! It was fun showing it during the show Sunday! Excellent observations about the ships! Your comments prompted me to take a close look at warships of that era. Bow does look a bit more advanced for the time. It's a bit more shaped than the famous, advanced HMS Dreadnought's, which was launched in 1906. I was surprised to see warships with two or three smokestacks of that height. And I just noticed the cool figure on the upper right plane's scaffolding!
Ruben DaCollector
Member Since 2008
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Peter Roe wrote:
Thanks, Rubén! It was fun showing it during the show Sunday! Excellent observations about the ships! Your comments prompted me to take a close look at warships of that era. Bow does look a bit more advanced for the time. It's a bit more shaped than the famous, advanced HMS Dreadnought's, which was launched in 1906. I was surprised to see warships with two or three smokestacks of that height. And I just noticed the cool figure on the upper right plane's scaffolding!
Cool, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself and it really was a lot of fun getting to revel in the joy we all saw you experiencing! Glad you could confirm that the bow does appear to be afvanced for 1910. It's funny you mention the figure in the plane, as that was actually something I noticed quickly the first time I saw the piece. The reason being that once I noticed how odd looking those planes were, I wanted to know how they were piloted, so I was purposely looking to see if either of the pilots were visible. Man, those searchlights are fantastic and one of the coolest things that adds the drama to the scene is that the camera is placed less than a hundred yards from the ship and only inches above the surface of the water, almost as if we're stealthily coming up to the surface in a sub. Too cool!
Shannon Weathers
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 12/2/2025
Incredible piece. A crown jewel in your collection.
Miki Annamanthadoo
Member Since 2003
1 - Posted on 12/3/2025
Congrats to finding this piece! It's a perfect ad$ to your collection!
thomas derrick aka #1marvelfan
Member Since 2022
1 - Posted on 12/8/2025
beautiful piece buddy, sorry for delay comment, this must look so good on the wall
Peter Roe
Member Since 2009
Posted on 12/8/2025
thomas derrick aka #1marvelfan wrote:
beautiful piece buddy, sorry for delay comment, this must look so good on the wall
Thanks, Tom!
thomas derrick aka #1marvelfan
Member Since 2022
1 - Posted on 12/8/2025
beautiful piece buddy, sorry for delay comment, this must look so good on the wall
Joe Murray
Member Since 2006
1 - Posted on 1/23/2026
Wow, if ever there was wall-worthy and awe inspiring, this piece is it! What a visionary futurist, big congrats!
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