Saint James the Greater

German 15th Century

1485

ink

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Renaissance Renaissance Religious

About this work

This image shows a man with a long beard and curly hair, wearing a green hat. He holds a staff in one hand and a book in the other, dressed in a blue robe with red and gold details. The background has a simple sky and grassy ground, framed by a red and orange border. Notice the rough, carved lines of his face and clothes—this isn’t painted but cut into wood. The colors were added by hand after the design was printed. Look up woodcut to see how this printing method worked.