Warwick Goble's War of the Worlds – Signalling with a Flag on a Long Pole
Like Henrique Alvim Corrêa's celebrated Belgian edition illustrations, Warwick Goble's pen-and-ink work for the 1898 serialized War of the Worlds captures human desperation against an unseen alien threat. Here, a crouching figure frantically signals with a flag on a tall pole while a massive, dark silhouette looms behind — possibly a Martian or fleeing civilian — rendered in Goble's characteristic loose, expressive linework. The sepia wash and dramatic composition convey urgency and scale without depicting the Martians directly.
Understated and atmospheric rather than lurid, this illustration relies on dread and silhouette rather than explicit spectacle. It would intrigue a literary reader but lacks the sensational visual punch of newsstand-grabbing pulp art.
“Signalling with a flag on a long pole”
