John Carter of Mars Covers by Michael Whelan

In 1979, Del Rey/Ballantine Books commissioned Michael Whelan to paint new covers for Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars novels, succeeding Gino D’Achille‘s 1973 series.

Following in the footsteps of previous illustration greats like Roy G. Krenkel and Frank Frazetta, Whelan brought his considerable skill in research and detail to give us a more fully-realised view of Barsoomian life than we had seen before.

Collected below are the 11 wraparound cover paintings without text, and four sketches.


Michael Whelan John Carter Of Mars Rough

Character studies

Michael Whelan 1 Princess Of Mars Original

A Princess of Mars

Michael Whelan 2 Gods Of Mars Original

The Gods of Mars

Michael Whelan 3 The Warlord Of Mars Rough 1

Sketch for The Warlord of Mars

Michael Whelan 3 The Warlord Of Mars Rough 2

Sketch for The Warlord of Mars

Michael Whelan 3 Warlord Of Mars Original

The Warlord of Mars

Michael Whelan 4 Thuvia Maid Of Mars Original

Thuvia, Maid of Mars

Michael Whelan 5 Chessmen Of Mars Original

The Chessmen of Mars

Michael Whelan 6 The Master Mind Of Mars Rough

Sketch for The Master Mind of Mars

Michael Whelan 6 Master Mind Of Mars Original

The Master Mind of Mars

Michael Whelan 7 Fighting Man Of Mars 1 Original

A Fighting Man of Mars

Michael Whelan 8 Swords Of Mars Original

Swords of Mars

Michael Whelan 9 Synthetic Men Of Mars Original

Synthetic Men of Mars

Michael Whelan 10 Llana Of Gathol Original

Llana of Gathol

Michael Whelan 11 John Carter Of Mars Original

John Carter of Mars


The Published Covers

Michael Whelan 1 A Princess Of Mars Cover

A Princess of Mars

Michael Whelan 2 The Gods Of Mars Cover

The Gods of Mars

Michael Whelan 3 The Warlord Of Mars Cover

The Warlord of Mars

Michael Whelan 4 Thuvia Maid Of Mars Cover

Thuvia Maid of Mars

Michael Whelan 5 The Chessmen Of Mars Cover

The Chessmen of Mars

Michael Whelan 6 The Master Mind Of Mars Cover

The Master Mind of Mars

Michael Whelan 7 A Fighting Man Of Mars Cover

A Fighting Man of Mars

Michael Whelan 8 Swords Of Mars Cover

Swords of Mars

Michael Whelan 9 Synthetic Men Of Mars Cover

Synthetic Men of Mars

Michael Whelan 10 Llana Of Gathol Cover

Llana of Gathol

Michael Whelan 11 John Carter Of Mars Cover

John Carter of Mars

Michael Whelan 12 A Guide To Barsoom Cover

A Guide to Barsoom


Updated Logo Design

Revising the logo to make it dimensional, and using high-quality scans of the original paintings to bring new vibrancy to the Del Rey editions.

Edgar Rice Burroughs Martian Tales Logo 2

Edgar Rice Burroughs Martian Tales Logo 1

Book logos by Scott Dutton

Book logos by Scott Dutton

Book logos by Scott Dutton

Book logos by Scott Dutton


New eBooks

And here are a couple with a new type scheme, one that puts the emphasis on the image as opposed to the JCoM branding. I did the series up for personal ebooks.

eBook design by Scott Dutton

Book logos by Scott Dutton

Design © Scott Dutton 2011


Return to Barsoom Banner by Scott Dutton



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