Deryni Coronation

This lavish illustration depicts the coronation of young King Kelson. The ceremony takes place after a lot of dramatic action involving swordfights and magical outbursts. Kelson, the teenage King, kneels before three archbishops who place the crown on his head. The spirit of the ancient hero Camber, another major Kurtz character, appears behind the young king to protect him. I depicted a number of characters from the book, DERYNI RISING, in the audience, including Kelson's tragic mother, dressed in white in the lower center of the picture. This kind of neo-medieval pageantry is one of the reasons why Kurtz' books are so fun to illustrate. 

"The Coronation of Kelson" is ink and acrylic watercolor on board, 17" x 11", June 1983, and was a commission from Doug Zimmerman, a Deryni fan of that era. As always, click on the image for a larger view.