1511
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Revelation of St. John: St. Michael fighting the Dragon is a 1511 by Albrecht Dürer, a Renaissance work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see Saint Michael fighting a dragon in this painting. The scene shows a dramatic battle between good and evil. It's interesting because the artist used detailed depictions of flora and fauna to make the scene feel real. The painting shows a war in heaven with Saint Michael and his angels defeating the dragon. To learn more about this style, look up the technique of chiaroscuro.
This woodcut comes from a series of 15 scenes from the Apocalypse. Dürer drew upon late northern Gothic traditions infused with the reality of spiritual events, biblical interpretation, and dense composition, as well as careful attention to naturalistic details of flora and fauna. He interprets Saint John’s visions by giving them a convincing physical existence. This scene depicts the war in heaven, a final battle between good and evil. Saint Michael and his angels defeat the dragon (Satan) and the other fallen angels, now morphed into repulsive demons, casting them into hell.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Albrecht Dürer spent his life in Nuremberg, a busy German city where artists traded prints like currency.
See the richer artist page
![Madonna and Child [obverse]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/d7b8ebf05d22ebe5/thumb.webp)
![Lot and His Daughters [reverse]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/b4ebf9b282faa17a/thumb.webp)
