Saint George and the Dragon
A man wearing armor, sitting astride a cream-white horse, drives a long lance down at a lizard-like dragon as a woman kneels with her hands in prayer in the landscape beyond in this vertical painting. Both people have pale skin and thin, gold halos floating above their heads. At the center of the composition, the man faces our left in profile as he looks down at the creature. The man has a straight nose and honey-brown hair under his gold-trimmed, pewter-gray helmet. Armor covers his entire body, and a celestial-blue cape billows behind him from where it fastens around his neck. A narrow, indigo-blue and gold band is tied around his left calf, and is inscribed with the word “HONI.” A black sword hangs from his left side. The horse is white with a silvery-white mane and tail. It rears on its hind legs as it turns its head to look at us with hazel-brown eyes. The horse wears a blue saddle and bridle, the same color as the man’s cape, trimmed with gold. A strap around the horse’s neck is painted in gold with the name, “RAPHELLO.” The rider thrusts his foot into the stirrup we can see as he plunges a lance down at the dragon under the horse’s front feet. The dragon has tawny brown skin with a mint green, dog-like head. It grips the earth with clawed feet as at pushes at the lance with one front foot. It twists its long, snake-like neck to look at the man with dark eyes. The dragon opens its pointed snout to show its teeth, and bat-like wings splay out. A tall outcropping over a cave rises along the left edge of the composition, behind the dragon. In a field a little farther back, to our right, the woman kneels with her body angled to our left. She tilts her head away from us and gazes past the man and horse. She has a straight nose, pale pink, bow-shaped lips, and her blond hair is pulled back in a bun. She wears a ruby-red dress and a sheer white wrap around her shoulders and across her arms. Around the woman, straw-yellow hills with bands of pine-green trees roll into the distance. Two terracotta-orange towers rise from a row of trees along the horizon. A few taller trees are outlined against the baby-blue sky, which lightens toward the horizon.
Details
- Palette
-
Select a color to find related artworks.
- Medium
- oil on panel
- Dimensions
- overall: 28.5 x 21.5 cm (11 1/4 x 8 7/16 in.) framed: 53.3 x 47.6 x 8.3 cm (21 x 18 3/4 x 3 1/4 in.)
- Department
- CIS-R
- Holding institution
- National Gallery of Art
- Image provider
- national-gallery-of-art
- License
- CC0-1.0
- Credit
- Andrew W. Mellon Collection
Art Genome Taxonomy
10 tags
Subject Matter
-
Saints Both · 99%
The title identifies Saint George, and the image presents a haloed armored figure in the act of confronting the dragon.
-
Equestrian Visual · 99%
A mounted armored rider and a rearing horse form the central action of the composition.
-
Animals Visual · 99%
The image prominently depicts a horse and a dragon, with the dragon’s wings, claws, serpentine body, and open mouth clearly visible.
-
Conflict Visual · 99%
The saint drives a lance into the dragon, making combat and physical confrontation the central action.
-
Narrative Both · 98%
The painting stages a recognizable episode involving an armored rider, a dragon, and a praying secondary figure; the catalog title identifies the narrative subject.
-
Landscapes Visual · 98%
Rocky formations, trees, fields, distant towers, and sky occupy the setting behind the figures and create an extensive landscape.
Styles and Movements
-
Renaissance Art Metadata · 97%
The work is by Raphael and dated c. 1506, supporting its classification within Renaissance art.
Medium and Techniques
-
Oil on Panel Metadata · 99%
The catalog specifies the medium as oil on panel.
Time Periods
-
16th Century Art Metadata · 99%
The catalog date of c. 1506 places the work in the sixteenth century.
Cultural and Religious Styles
-
Christian Art and Architecture Both · 95%
The work presents a Christian religious narrative, with haloed figures, a praying woman, and the saint’s combat with the dragon.
Source & rights
Raphael. Saint George and the Dragon. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.