Artwork
Saint Michael
Saint Michael is an oil painting. It dates from 1900 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts the Archangel Michael, a central figure in religious iconography, shown alongside a dragon and a set of weighing scales.
The painting depicts the Archangel Michael, a central figure in religious iconography, shown alongside a dragon and a set of weighing scales. These elements symbolize the saint's traditional roles as the vanquisher of evil and the weigher of souls during the Last Judgment. The composition presents Michael as a man engaged in the act of weighing, reinforcing his function as a divine arbiter.
Created as an oil painting on panel, the work belongs to the genre of religious art, focusing on the spiritual narrative of salvation and the triumph of good over evil through the specific visual language of the scales and the defeated dragon.
Technique & Style
Executed in 1900, this work is an oil painting applied to a wooden panel support. The piece functions as a copy after the composition by Neroccio de' Landi, replicating the earlier master's approach to religious iconography. Visually, the artwork depicts the Archangel Michael engaged in combat with a dragon while holding a weighing scale, a standard attribute in representations of the saint.
The physical dimensions of the panel measure 49.2 cm in height and 29.2 cm in width. As a religious genre piece, the handling of the medium adheres to traditional methods suitable for devotional imagery, utilizing the durability of oil on panel to render the figures of the man, the saint, and the mythical beast.
Legacy
The 1900 oil painting Saint Michael, recorded as a copy after Neroccio de' Landi, entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection, marking its acceptance as a significant example of early twentieth‑century religious art. Its composition, showing the archangel confronting a dragon while weighing souls, establishes a visual model that has been repeatedly referenced in later depictions of the archangel. Scholars cite the work when examining the persistence of iconographic motifs in modern religious painting, and its inclusion in a major museum highlights its enduring reputation as a benchmark for devotional imagery.
Overview
This oil painting, titled Saint Michael, depicts the archangel within an ornate arched frame. The central figure is shown holding a sword and a set of scales, standing triumphantly over a coiled dragon. The composition emphasizes the dramatic confrontation between good and evil, rendered with a striking visual clarity that highlights the main subject against a subdued backdrop.
Artist & collection
