Drachenkampf des hl. Georg

Drachenkampf des hl. Georg, painted by Hans Mair von Landshut around 1500, exemplifies early 16th-century German religious art and reflects the stylistic traits of the Danube School through its dynamic composition and vivid narrative of Saint George's triumph over the dragon. The work is housed in the Bavarian State Painting Collections at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, where it has been studied as a key example of devotional painting from the period, illustrating both the devotional practices of the time and the artist's engagement with contemporary themes of martyrdom and divine intervention.

Scholarship on the piece highlights its technical mastery within the medium of wood and its significance in Mair von Landshut's oeuvre as part of his broader religious output, situating it within the context of late medieval Central European art and the evolving devotional landscape before the Reformation.

Created in 1500, Drachenkampf des hl. Georg is a carved wooden panel by the Bavarian artist Mair von Landshut. The work illustrates the legendary encounter of Saint George with a dragon, rendered in the vivid, narrative style typical of the Northern Renaissance. It is part of the Alte Pinakothek’s collection in Munich.

The central figure is a mounted knight, identified as Saint George, poised on a white horse with a flowing red ribbon. He brandishes a sword while his left hand steadies the reins, suggesting imminent action against the dragon. A woman in a red dress and a white dog appear in the foreground, adding narrative detail to the heroic tableau.