Description

--The Face of War--



This listing is for a single, unique, and incredibly intricate miniature- designed as a one-off display piece, you could still use it in Chaos armies of Warhammer 40,000 (40k), Warhammer Fantasy, The Horus Heresy or Age of Sigmar.







The inspiration for this piece came from a variety of sources, but the main idea was to try to epitomise warfare as a singular, nightmarish entity- in much the same way as Salvador Dali's famous work.



A study of war and the Games Workshop god "Nurgle" led me to the ancient neo-sumerian God "Nergal", which also provided a lot of inspiration for this piece. While the Games Workshop creation is the god of disease and decay, the original Nergal was more than that- God of the Pestilent Sun, he represented warfare as well as disease and was believed to rule over the dead.







This miniature started out as a Games Workshop "Great Unclean One" figure- a personal favourite of mine, as well as the embodiment of the god Nurgle. As a challenge to myself, I decided to try to make it into a super-detailed work of art- a fine centrepiece for any army, as well as a demonstration of my current talents and abilities.





I started out in December 2013 by cleaning the resin parts, and carefully fixed every spot, tube and wound using the tip of a sharp knife, as well as clearing up any other moulding problems. I then continued carving into each piece, creating a fully three-dimensional monster while keeping as much of the original detail intact.



To make sure the resin parts were of the best quality, I actually used two miniature kits, and selected the neatest cast pieces from each. The spare parts were used to help make the flail (it has seven skulls, rather than the original three).



A few components from Forgeworld were also used, along with some rather old metal nurglings on the base.







The sword was carved with neo-sumerian cuneiform on one side, and ancient hebrew on the other; although much of it isn't visible due to the weathering and sculpting that went over the top! You can find a rough transliteration of the symbols in the photobucket gallery (link below).



The rest of the details were sculpted by hand, with each part being carefully considered and modified before continuing. Each of the tiny spots was added individually, and every slug, leech and maggot (barring the ones already present on the miniature) was also made and applied individually by hand.



It was painted in three parts- the base, the body and the tongue- and was finally assembled in February 2016, taking a total of five hundred and ninety four hours (594!).







Of course, no work of art would be complete without symbolism- and this piece is covered with subtle symbols, based around religious concepts, warfare and numerology, while hopefully remaining in keeping with the feel of the original model.



There are three sets of seven skulls on the miniature- the seven on the base represent the seven holy virtues, the seven on the flail represent the seven deadly sins and the final seven (attached to the body of the beast, as well as one on the hilt of his sword) represent the seven levels of Mount Pugatory, and the seven holy virtues.



There are also seven organisms of note on the base, each linked to war:

Fear, Ignorance and Hatred are the three nurglings (from smallest to largest)

Famine, Pestilence and Loss are the three rats (Famine is surrounded by posionous leeches, Pestilence has two heads and Loss stands alone at the front)

Hope- the final noteworthy organism here is represented by a tiny, brightly coloured red poppy; handmade and the only flower- or healthy organism- on the base.



The sword has been inscribed with ancient Neo-sumerian Cuneiform and Hebrew symbols, each spelling the name of the god upon which the miniature was based.



There are twenty-one tiny bullet casings on the base (though some may no longer be visible); one for each of the skulls.



The base was hand turned from Sycamore wood (Maple), a species known for its

antiseptic properties-just in case!



Finally, a pair of (real) diamonds adorn the piece- one in the eye of the skull on the hilt of his sword, the other in the eye of one of the skulls on the flail. The diamonds are brilliant cut, with a total weight of approximately 0.11 carats.







The whole piece has been triple varnished with a tough matte finish for maximum durability, although there is a chance that the odd leaf or blade of grass may come loose. It is still a delicate piece though and should be handled with care.



The piece is mounted on a large custom wooden base (approx. 100mm diameter) and is sold as shown.



Please be aware that this is not a toy, and may not be suitable for younger audiences or gamers due to graphic themes and details.



This may also be considered an example of "Outsider Art"- please read my about me page for more information.







Sold as shown- for more images of this miniature (and other works), please visit:



http://s1285.photobucket.com/user/B-Stores/library/Daemons%20Mk%20II/Great%20Unclean%20One?sort=3&page=1







All items will be posted within one - three working days of receipt of payment, and will be sent tracked and insured.





Thanks for looking! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments.





Don't forget to check out my other listings!