The Martyrdom of Saint Barbara

German 15th Century

1485

ink

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Renaissance Renaissance Religious beheaded head

About this work

The painting shows a scene of Saint Barbara being martyred. It's a dramatic scene with many figures and details. The artist used hand-coloring to add emotion to the scene, which is interesting because it was a time-consuming process. The use of hand-coloring gives the scene a sense of depth and feeling. This was a common technique used in woodcuts from this time period. You can learn more about this style by looking into the technique: woodcut.