Nomes

The other new piece of Oz artwork by John R. Neill that I've recently added to my collection is this fantastic copyright page from Tik-Tok of Oz. Tik-Tok is one of the few Oz books with the majority of its artwork surviving, and many of the Oz pieces I have are from this book.

As always, the scale of Neill's artwork is wonderful, and in the case of this drawing, the characters are quite large. I have a weakness for drawings that include lettering, and I love the fact that L. Frank Baum's name is included in the drawing. Unfortunately, it's not also signed by Neill — but most of his Oz drawings from this period were unsigned. These same two nomes pop up again at the end of the book, toting a gun over the caption "The End".

The back of this drawing has a very rough simple sketch of a fireplace. Neill was frugal with his illustration boards and often used the backs for sketches, but this particular piece doesn't seem to bear any reference to an Oz drawing. The other marking on the back is a penciled price of $20 — I assume this is from an early Oz Convention, when apparently it was possible to buy original art for that price. How things have changed!