Paper Models as Propaganda During the Spanish Civil War

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And hi, bloomohio. Sorry I can't help you with a specific Guerra Civil model in 1/25 scale, but some of the models in this thread might be able to be enlarged to meet your needs.

Best of luck in your search.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[bloomohio]

Thanks but these models are in great detail and easy to build and the colors are great and I have a list of what models were issued some were redone but to 1/50 scale too small for my TRUMP sized hands!

[Art Deco]

The Crocodile looks great! Very nicely assembled, the pantographs are especially nice.

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

Thanks, Art Deco.

Armor lovers will appreciate this week’s Guerra Civil paper model, the Russian T-26 in Spanish Nationalist markings. Drawn by Pedro Sabidon Feliu and published by Ediciones Uriarte, this colorful miniature has the look of a modern, scale paper model. Well-drawn running gear and a realistic camouflage set this offering apart from the more toy like models of the era.

Based on the British Vickers 6-Ton Tank, over 11,000 copies of the T-26 were produced by the Soviets in the 1930s and into the 40s. During the Spanish Civil War, the Russians delivered tanks and support to the Spanish Republicans, but as the conflict wore on, many tanks were captured by the Nationalists. By the end of the war, nearly 40 percent of the tanks had fallen into Nationalist hands, and the model seen here represents one of those tanks.

Titled Tanque Pesado, or Heavy Tank, the three-man T-26 could only be described as heavy when compared to the Tanque Ligero, the Renault FT, another tank seen in numbers in the Spanish conflict. Just as the Germans had tested their aircraft and crews with the Condor Legion, the Soviets were trying out their new tank on the fields of Spain. Previously untested in battle, the T-26 made its bones in the Guerra Civil.

The model was a fairly straight forward build, with just a few fit problems, nothing a rescore on a reprinted part couldn’t solve. I made the cannon from brass tubing and sprayed it with a gray primer. Pedro did a fine job with his paint scheme, even going so far as to camouflage the underside of the tank. However, he didn’t camouflage the running gear, leaving it in gray for us to appreciate.

I like the aggressive stance of the tank, with its sloping tracks similar in line to the Skoda 38. The air recognition X and the flag around the bustle add a bit of dash to the tank’s purposeful line. Most Nationalist tanks of the time also had the flag’s colors painted on the mantlet, but I chose to keep the turret stock.

I’m currently having trouble attaching my last few images, and I'll post them when the electron weather clears. TD.

Many thanks to Tom Greensfelder for the scans of this interesting model.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

Attached find the rest of the images for the T-26 post. I'm also attaching a photograph of the T-26 found at El Goloso Museum in Madrid, Spain. The shot shows the flag's colors painted on the mantlet in the usual way. It also shows the ugliest attempt at camouflage I've ever seen. Let's hope the museum takes the tank in hand and does justice to this historic type.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

This little diorama portrays an important moment in Spanish political history. On April 12, 1931, municipal elections were held throughout depression-era Spain, resulting in a solid Socialist/Republican victory. Two days later, King Alfonso XIII went into exile and Spain entered into what is known as the Second Republic. This paper model shows a celebration of these events in a town square in the capital of Catalonia, Barcelona.

The paper model is part of a series called Visions Historiques de Catalunya. The models in this series came in a small booklet, measuring 15 X 9 ½ cm, roughly 6” X 3 ¾”. The price of 25 céntimos is nice to see, as vintage paper models rarely carry a price tag. The series depicted events throughout the history of Catalonia, the fiercely independent and culturally distinct area in northeast Spain. The Catalonians, along with the north central Basques and the northwestern Galicians, have fostered separatist movements since their inclusion within Spain’s borders. Political turmoil is a constant in Spain, and this diorama shows a high point in Spanish Socialism.

The flags seen in the model tell much of the story. First is the new red/yellow/purple flag of the Republicans, replacing the old red/yellow/red monarchist flag. I don’t know the main building seen in the diorama, but it may well be the Barcelona city hall. The Catalonian flag is also in evidence as the flag with five yellow and four red stripes. One of the oldest flags in constant use, it also appears as a long band on the right side of the booklet’s cover. I can’t determine who published these models, but I would be interested to find out. I have seen this particular model referred to as having been published in 1931, but I believe it was printed later than that. The 1931 date on the model’s cover refers to the event, and not the publication date.

Construction was my usual…mat board to stiffen the flat surfaces, and doubled 110 lb. cardstock to stiffen the figures. I cheated, and used a medium gray watercolor to quickly paint the edges of the figures, as there were too many colors on them to justify the tedium for this simple model. Short lengths of 1/8” square basswood were glued to the backs and bases of the figures to help them stay upright. The back of the model could be prettier, but the photograph is included to show the construction of the diorama.

A quick and easy build, this three-dimensional scene is reminiscent of those published by Construcciones Costales seen earlier in this thread. Only this time, the model depicts a joyful moment, rather than the horrors of war.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[Art Deco]

The T-26 is a very striking model, the detailed shading on the running gear graphics really adds to the visual appeal. Very nice work dimensionalizing those parts to a more realistic thickness.

I really like the use of perspective on the Barcelona diorama's backdrop. Both models very well constructed, as usual. Thanks for the latest installments in this wonderful series!

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And thanks, Art Deco. My intent was to mention the clever use of forced perspective in the small Barcelona diorama, but short-term memory being what it is…

Also, a couple of corrections. I referred to the people of Catalonia as Catalonians. I should have said Catalans. And secondly, I discovered that the building depicted in the previous diorama is known as the Palau de le Generalitat de Catalunya. It is the Presidential Palace and serves as the seat of the Catalan government in Barcelona. The photograph in Wikipedia shows the building from a near identical perspective as the 80 year old diorama.

This week’s model takes us from the excitement of popular revolution to the cold-steel realities of a civil war. The green cannon shown below is yet another paper model from the drawing board of Pedro Sabidon Feliu, this time drawing for Ediciones Uriarte. There is a bit of a mystery connected with this particular field piece, namely, what is it? I know a little about historic artillery, and I can name a few guns when I see them, but my limited knowledge ends there. After going through my few artillery books and the internet, my best answer is that the model depicts a World War I era German 10 cm K (Kanone) 17. An upgrade of the earlier 10 cm K 14, the K 17 was developed into a long range, medium gun. As trench warfare ossified into a line running from the Belgian coast to the Swiss frontier, long-range artillery was seen as the key to victory. The problem was that existing long-range guns required plenty of time to construct and bring to a firing position. The K 17 addressed this problem by providing a weapon that needed less build-time and fewer men to transport, erect and fire the gun far behind the front lines.

In the event, the resulting gun was too heavy to be pulled by the usual team of horses, so the long barrel and recoil cradle would be removed from the carriage and transported on their own transport wagon. The addition of a dedicated limber made moving the gun and ammunition quite a production, but nowhere near the effort required for the larger, long-range weapons. With fewer than 200 10 cm K 17’s manufactured, the gun is not widely known today. I would venture Feliu’s cardstock cannon may be the only commercially available model ever produced of the K 17.

My finished paper model is large, measuring nearly a foot long. As mentioned before, I like to build strong, so I laminated nearly everything with either mat board or 110 lb. cardstock. The rolled gun tube and the curved underside of the recoil mechanism were strong enough on their own without reinforcement.

The track of the model’s wheels is quite wide, wider than that seen in any historic photograph of the weapon. Also, the oversized gun shield carries two unique, curved fenders, presumably to keep the road wheels from spraying muck and mire on the troops marching behind the horse-drawn carriage as it was being transported. The original paper axle designed by PSF was in the form of a long, blue, triangular tube designed to pass through triangular holes cut into the front of the carriage. While strong, I thought it would look out of place on the model. I scratchbuilt three brown cylinders, each with mat board caps glued into both ends. The finished axle looks oversized, but it was designed to fit the indicated spaces on the frame and wheels, and it easily supports the heavy model.

Each wheel is each made up of four mat board parts, covered with mirrored kit parts and painted with green watercolor. The mottled brown tires are thin, colored strips of mat board that have been delaminated from the board, cut to length and glued in place. This is a technique I have employed on many card models. I use my knife’s No. 11 blade to lightly cut through the colored surface of the mat board. After the desired shape has been cut, I use the tip of my knife to tease up a corner of the part. With my fingers, I strip the part away from the mat board. If I find any residual paper fibers left on the underside of the part, I use a knife equipped with a curved No. 10 blade to scrape them away. Finally, I color the edges and glue the part to the model.

It’s strange to see the 10 cm K 17 as a Spanish Guerra Civil paper model. After WW I, the Treaty of Versailles forbade the German Army from keeping such heavy weaponry, and some K 17’s were sold to Romania and Sweden, some were destroyed and others were hidden away in barns and caves in Germany, waiting for the next war. None of the research I have seen indicates that any of the guns were sent to Spain, so why design and sell a model of this relatively obscure type? Whatever the case, I’ve always liked model cannons, and this imposing gun is a new favorite. Thanks to Tom Greensfelder for the clean and sharp scan.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[elliott]

Always enjoy another post by Thumb Dog and this one is no exception. Your writing style makes what could be a very dry subject easy reading. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and research, as well as the models, with us.

[Vermin_King]

You've done this model proud. And thanks for the education