Saint Michael Vanquishing the Devil
About this artwork
The archangel Michael appears as a winged knight in armour slaying the devil, in the form of a dragon. This subject, from the Biblical Book of Revelation, was popular in southern Spain, where it was associated with the 'reconquista', the recovery of Spanish territory lost to the Moors in the Middle Ages. The panel was probably the centre of a larger altarpiece. The artist's interest in sumptuous patterns is especially evident in the treatment of the saint's armour and cloak, and in the decorative punching, describing the his halo and enriching the gold background.
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title:Saint Michael Vanquishing the Devil
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accession number:NG 1021
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artist:Unknown
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materials:Tempera and gold on panel
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date created:early 15th century
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measurements:Painted area: 183.40 x 92.00 cm; Including frame (original except at bottom): 191.80 x 104.50 cm
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credit line:Purchased 1910
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photographer:Antonia Reeve
Gonçal Peris (Gonzalo Perez)
Gonçal Peris (Gonzalo Perez)
Pérez worked as a painter of altarpieces and devotional pictures in Valencia, on the south eastern coast of Spain, during the early fifteenth century. Few documented works by him survive, but they include an altarpiece dedicated to St Martin painted for the monastery at Portaceli and a panel of St…
