Hercules Slaying the Lion of Nemea
1550
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
1550
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
This black-and-white print shows a muscular man with a wild beard wrestling a lion. The lion is tangled in his arms, its mouth open in a snarl. Behind them, a rocky cliff and a small village with a church steeple sit in the distance. The man’s bare chest and the lion’s fur are drawn with sharp, detailed lines. The artist uses shading to show muscle and fur texture. Next, look up Renaissance to see how this style fits into that era.
