Frank Frazetta’s ‘A Princess of Mars’ Leads Heritage’s November 4 Illustration Art Auction

Other highlights include Chesley Bonestell’s visionary space art, the Brothers Hildebrandt’s first Lord of the Rings calendar work and treasures from Rockwell to Pooh DOWNLOAD DIGITAL PRESS KIT DALLAS, Texas (Oct. 16, 2025) — Heritage will once again approach auction history November 4 when it presents Frank Frazetta’s A Princess of Mars (1970), one of the most celebrated works of fantasy illustration. The original painting leads the auction house’s Illustration Art Signature® Auction, a sweeping sale that unites icons of imagination — from Chesley Bonestell’s celestial vistas and a Brothers Hildebrandt Tolkien masterpiece to beloved Golden Age and children’s book illustrators whose art defined generations. The event boasts more than 400 lots and, in true Heritage fashion, offers gems by Gil Elvgren, Alberto Vargas, Dean Cornwell and many more. Heritage holds every major auction record for Frazetta’s original works, including the landmark $13.5 million sale of Man Ape (1966) earlier this year — setting the high-water mark not only for the artist but for all of modern fantasy art. With A Princess of Mars, Heritage once again offers a cornerstone of the genre: an image so definitive that it has come to symbolize the very essence of adventure and otherworldly romance. “Frank Frazetta’s paintings embody the entire mythology of modern fantasy art,” says Sarahjane Blum, Heritage Auctions’ Director of Illustration Art. “Every brushstroke he made reshaped the genre. His work redefined imagination itself, and Heritage is honored to continue setting the standard for presenting and preserving his legacy.” Frank Frazetta’s Definitive Vision of Barsoom Painted in 1970, A Princess of Mars stands among the most renowned of Frazetta’s depictions of John Carter and Dejah Thoris. The artist created two versions of the composition that year — the first as the dust jacket for the Doubleday hardcover edition of A Princess of Mars, and the second, the present work, which he kept for himself and declared his preferred version. The painting’s classical composition, rich shadows and dramatic atmosphere transport the viewer directly to the crimson landscapes of Barsoom, Edgar Rice Burroughs’ legendary Martian realm. More than a showpiece of technical brilliance, Frazetta’s image reignited interest in Burroughs’ 1912 tale and helped define the visual language of science-fiction fantasy for the rest of the century. It remains one of the most recognizable and reproduced works in the artist’s career — so iconic it was later used as the front cover of Taschen’s Masterpieces of Fantasy Art. Chesley Bonestell’s Visions of the Final Frontier From Mars to the Moon, the sale also showcases four exceptional works by Chesley Bonestell, the father of modern space art whose dazzling precision in the middle of the last century shaped how the public imagined the cosmos. Bonestell’s paintings merged scientific accuracy with visionary grandeur, inspiring artists, scientists and the architects of the Space Age. Among the highlights is The Star-Studded Reaches of Measureless Space, the original LIFE magazine cover for the December 20, 1954 issue, part of its landmark “The World We Live In” series. Depicting the double star RW Persei against a vast extraterrestrial landscape, the work captured the era’s wonder and Cold War fascination with exploration beyond Earth. Among the Bonestell artworks are two fresh-to-the-market illustrations — Arrival on the Moon and Unloading the Space Ship — from Rocket to the Moon, published in 1961, the year President John F. Kennedy announced the ambitious goal of sending an American safely to the Moon before the end of the decade. Visualizing a future that would soon become reality, these works ignited the passion of generations of explorers and remain among the most influential images in the history of scientific illustration. The Brothers Hildebrandt Bring Middle-earth to Life If Bonestell charted the heavens, Greg and Tim Hildebrandt gave shape to the mythical realms beneath. Their Treebeard (1976), the August illustration for Ballantine Books’ first Lord of the Rings calendar, became an instant icon of modern fantasy art. With their luminous palette and cinematic imagination, the Hildebrandts brought Tolkien’s world to life for millions, establishing the visual template for Middle-earth that still resonates today. “I’ve lived a very long, long time; so my name is like a story,” Tolkien wrote of the ancient Ent, a line that could just as easily describe the Hildebrandts’ lasting place in the history of illustration. The painting’s juxtaposition of the towering Treebeard with the wide-eyed Hobbits Merry and Pippin captures the wonder, humor and awe that made the calendar an international sensation, and offers collectors a rare opportunity to acquire a cornerstone of 20th-century fantasy imagery. Golden Age and Storybook Highlights Beyond its giants of fantasy and space, the November 4 event also celebrates the enduring magic of narrative art. The sale features an early work by Charles Addams, whose darkly whimsical humor became an American institution (this witchy one is offered just ahead of Halloween); original sketches by Earnest Howard Shepard from the creation of Winnie-the-Pooh; and illustrations from beloved children’s classics such as the Frog and Toad series (Arnold Lobel), Dinotopia(James Gurney) and rare Harry Potter artwork by the original illustrators. Collectors will also find powerful examples by Norman Rockwell, Harvey Dunn and brothers J.C. and Frank Leyendecker — Heritage Auctions’ mainstays whose mastery of composition and storytelling defined the Golden Age of American illustration — as well as dramatic pulp cover art by Norm Saunders, whose explosive covers for pulp magazines defined the look of the genre for decades. “Illustration is where imagination meets storytelling,” says Blum. “Whether it’s the cosmic precision of Bonestell, the playful humanity of Addams or the nostalgic comfort of Rockwell, this auction celebrates the artists who built entire worlds in a single image.” Images and information about all lots in Heritage’s November 4 Illustration Art Signature® Auction can be found here. A full preview of the auction takes place Oct. 20-22 at Heritage Auctions in Dallas, and a highlights preview takes place Oct. 28-30 at Heritage’s New York City location. Please go here and scroll down for more information. Heritage Auctions is the largest fine art and collectibles auction house founded in the United States, and the world's largest collectibles auctioneer. Heritage maintains offices in New York, Dallas, Beverly Hills, Chicago, Palm Beach, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Hong Kong and Tokyo. Heritage also enjoys the highest Online traffic and dollar volume of any auction house on earth (source: SimilarWeb and Hiscox Report). The Internet's most popular auction-house website, HA.com, has more than 2 million registered bidder-members and searchable free archives of 7,000,000 past auction records with prices realized, descriptions and enlargeable photos. Reproduction rights routinely granted to media for photo credit. For breaking stories, follow us: HA.com/Facebook and HA.com/Twitter . Link to this release or view prior press releases . Hi-Res images available: Christina Rees, Director of Public Relations and Communications 214-409-1341; CRees@HA.com