If – Worlds of Science Fiction – January, 1953 (Featuring “Check and Checkmate”, by Walter M. Miller, Jr.) [Anton Kurka]

From table of contents:

“Cover by Anton Kurka, suggesting The Ultimate Re-Sowing of the Human Race – 4000 AD”.

Completely unrelated to the magazine’s contents, Kurka’s painting is a fascinating take on the theme of giant robots, a seemingly perennial trope of science fiction and popular culture.  The image is reminiscent of Frank Kelly Freas’ well-known (and oft reproduced with many variations) cover for the October, 1953 issue of Astounding Science Fiction, albeit the symbolism of Kurka’s painting is somewhat more benign than that of Freas. 

(A lot more benign, that is!)

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