Saint George
According to the hagiographic legend, St. George was a Roman officer, born into a Christian family, originary from the Greek Middle East. As a member of Emperor Diocletian's guard, his Christian faith was noticed and, when refusing to renounce it, he was tortured and beheaded.
The image of St. George frequently appears on patron icons, frescoes, mosaic and illuminations. As saint patron of many towns, even states, he may appear on banners, seals, coat of arms and emblems. Iconographically, there are two most frequent representations of St. George: as saint martyr, or in the narrative theme of "St. George slaying the dragon".
As saint martyr, St. George is depicted alone, frontally, either full-length or half-length, against a neutre background (gold or flat hue), dressed in military clothes suggesting the Roman officer uniform: chain mail armor, balteus, red mantle fastened at the neck, but Byzantine military boots. The saint is depicted bare-headed, however, in later representations, he wears the martyr's wreath.
As the dragon slayer, St. George is shown in profile, riding a white charging horse. He is seen in the moment when he kills with the spear the dragon crouched by the horse's feet.
In both iconographic representations, the God's presence is frequently suggested by light rays differently colored, descending from the open skies. Ths detail is painted on one of the upper corners of the image, preferably the left one.
According to the hagiographic legend, St. George was a Roman officer, born into a Christian family, originary from the Greek Middle East. As a member of Emperor Diocletian's guard, his Christian faith was noticed and, when refusing to renounce it, he was tortured and beheaded.
The image of St. George frequently appears on patron icons, frescoes, mosaic and illuminations. As saint patron of many towns, even states, he may appear on banners, seals, coat of arms and emblems. Iconographically, there are two most frequent representations of St. George: as saint martyr, or in the narrative theme of "St. George slaying the dragon".
As saint martyr, St. George is depicted alone, frontally, either full-length or half-length, against a neutre background (gold or flat hue), dressed in military clothes suggesting the Roman officer uniform: chain mail armor, balteus, red mantle fastened at the neck, but Byzantine military boots. The saint is depicted bare-headed, however, in later representations, he wears the martyr's wreath.
As the dragon slayer, St. George is shown in profile, riding a white charging horse. He is seen in the moment when he kills with the spear the dragon crouched by the horse's feet.
In both iconographic representations, the God's presence is frequently suggested by light rays differently colored, descending from the open skies. Ths detail is painted on one of the upper corners of the image, preferably the left one.
