The John Bannister Collection - D-Day and Militaria
Lot 1132:
Description
A museum-quality collection of ten aviation art cards, each a detailed black-and-white print of an iconic WWII or Korean War fighter/attack plane. What makes this collection truly exceptional are the signatures and personal inscriptions from some of the most decorated pilots of the era. This grouping moves far beyond simple prints—it provides direct provenance to history. The cards feature a Lockheed P-38 Lightning (with inscriptions from 1st Lt. Bob DeHaven, a 14-kill ace, and 1st Lt. Rex Barber, an alleged participant in the shoot-down of Admiral Yamamoto’s plane); a Curtiss P-40 Warhawk for Medal of Honor recipient Platoon Sergeant Mitchell Paige (Guadalcanal 1942); the Douglas SBD Dauntless, with inscriptions from S.H. “Swede” Vejtasa (one of the few pilots to achieve ace status in both fighters and bombers) and Hal Buell; the Grumman F6F Hellcat signed by John R. Galvin (7 kills, 1944); and the Vought F4U Corsair signed by Ken Walsh, CMC (21-kill ace, VMF-124/222) and R. E. Galer (13-kill ace, Medal of Honor recipient in Korea). They are printed on nice cardstock. The condition is superb, with the prints sharp and the handwritten inscriptions clear, protected from environmental wear. Part of the John Bannister Collection. H 4″, W 6″, D 0.05″ See photos.
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