GREATEST ACE - Original Pencil Drawing

Awarded the Victoria Cross and credited with 72 aerial victories, Major William 'Billy' Bishop VC became the highest-scoring Ace of the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. Hailed by German fighter legend Ernst Udet as "the greatest English scouting Ace", the Canadian pilot earned his place amongst the most celebrated airmen of the conflict.

Rather than depicting one of Bishop's many triumphs, Richard Taylor has chosen to capture one of the defining moments of his early combat career. On 25 March 1917, moments after claiming his first aerial victory, the engine of Bishop's Nieuport 17 failed, forcing him to make an emergency landing under enemy fire in No Man's Land. Reaching the safety of the Allied trenches, Bishop later described the ordeal as "the most exciting adventure of my life."

Beautifully rendered in Richard Taylor's distinctive style, Greatest Ace is a fitting tribute to one of the First World War's most decorated and courageous fighter pilots.

Original Drawing

It's easy to see why Richard's original work is in such high demand and with so much of his time engaged with commissions, we're rarely able to offer his new original work.

Framed to full conservation standards, included in the matting of these stunning drawings is the rare autograph of Billy Bishop, an original WW1 Royal Flying Corps Cap Badge, a museum-quality reproduction VC medal and a genuine section of No Man's Land barbed wire!