| Places | |
|---|---|
| Accession Number | ART90450 |
| Collection type | Art |
| Measurement | Overall (board): 51.2 x 48 cm; image: 51.2 x 48 cm |
| Object type | Work on paper |
| Physical description | brush and ink, crayon, white gouache, pencil on paper on card |
| Place made | United Kingdom: England, Greater London, London |
| Date made | c 1916 |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Verdun and God in the war machine
Description
Depicts a thousand small German soldiers marching in the foreground, while above them rises the giant figure of a German officer. He shovels the soldiers into the barrel of gun, which is already gorged with the bodies of soldiers. Perched on the German officer's helmet is a vulture. This caricature comments on the extraordinarily high casualty rate of French defenders during the Battle of Verdun (as well as among attacking German troops) in February 1916. After six months the casualties from both sides exceeded half a million men. Will Dyson was the first Australian official war artist to visit the front during the First World War, travelling to France in December 1916, remaining there until May 1917, making records of the Australian involvement in the war. He was formally appointed as an official war artist, attached to the AIF, in May 1917, working in France and London throughout the war. His commission was terminated in March 1920.