Landships II

James H · Legend

Comments invited.

Lothianman · Colonel

Intended to evoke a Nissen hut, or similar prefab? If it's British I would assume a Nissen hut rather than the US equivalent (Quonset?)>

James H · Legend

I was thinking more of the vehicles in the background.

Ian P · Major

I don't know where the design for the tanks came from but the artist seems to be Ernest Hassledine:

http://www.harpenden-history.org.uk/page_id__354_path__0p3p88p.aspx

Lothianman · Colonel

I do mean the vehicles - they are sort of Nissen Hut-ish. However, if the chap was drawing similar 'tanks' in other contexts it may just be coincidence. It may just be that tanks were a good way to sound modern and leading edge and front line when marketing ... one thinks of the 'Atomic Vacuum Cleaner' sold by a character in a Graham Greene novel ca. 1950.

Roger Todd · Legend

Perhaps the artist had seen a picture of this mock-up, the so-called Holt 75:

From here:

http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/tanks/UnitedStates/mediumtanks/MediumTanks.html

Associated blurb:

The source of this design has been lost to history. This sheetmetal mock up built around 1916 was advertised as the Holt Model 75 Tank. Holt did not sponsor this design. The left is the front of the tank. Either the large pipe to the left is an 8" cannon or an exhaust pipe. All guns in this picture are dummies.

James H · Legend

Lothianman wrote:
I do mean the vehicles

Oops. Beg pardon. I see what you mean now.

A good spot on Ernest H, Ian.

I suspected the Holt, but the timing's a bit odd. The men in the drawing are accurately done, and he's obviously heard of tanks, hence their inclusion, but I would have thought he'd be more likely to have seen a photo of a rhomboid than of a very obscure American thing. Then again, they seem to be on tandem tracks, a nod towards Crompton's or IIRC Sueter's ideas. Maybe just coincidence, but a remarkable one.