The Battle of Ravenna

A push of pikes was a phenomenon in late medieval and early modern warfare where two masses of soldiers with 12-18 foot spears engaged each other directly, and were particularly brutal resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. It is hard to imagine what a push of pikes would look like in detail, as it cannot really be tested. I however find the dynamics of crowds interesting and wanted to depict this type of fight specifically at the battle of Ravenna. 

A drawing survives by Hans Holbein the younger of a pike battle that is particularly interesting; pikes sticking somewhat uselessly into the air create a tangled staccato motif, while at the point of engagement pikes litter the ground at the two sides seem to have abandoned them to hack into each other with swords, knives, and halberds. This idea of some of the soldiers dropping their pikes to rush at those still encumbered by an unwieldy 18 foot pole is what  I based the composition  around.

As with other pieces I have made, it is based on the graphic work of Albrecht Durer, in a sort of faux print.