ST GEORGE AND THE DRAGON
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
IMAGE NUMBER 668
The Saint George and the Dragon sculpture is located in Köpmanbrinken, Merchant Square, in Gamla Stan, the oldest area of Stockholm. A bronze sculpture depicts St. George mounted on horseback while slaying a dragon in order to save a princess. This is believed to be allegory for the victory at the Battle at Brunkeberg, which occurred on October 10, 1471, when Sweden was attacked by and defeated the Danes. The slaying of the dragon has since become a symbol of Sweden.
The original wood carving of this sculpture was created in 1489 by a German artist, living in Stockholm, Bernt Notke. It resides in the Storkyrkan (Great Church) in Stockholm. This bronze copy was created in 1912 by Otto Meyer from a cast of the original. This incredibly detailed sculpture depicts St. George and his horse in full armor. St. George is wearing a helmet and has his sword raised in his right hand as if ready to strike. Dragon is lying on its back underneath the front legs of the horse. The head of the dragon is close to the head of the horse. The plinth contain various relief sculptures related to the martyrdom of St. George, including a skull. The sculpture rests high up on a pedestal of eight courses of marble blocks.
TECHNICAL NOTES
The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Phase One 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1/10th of a second and an aperture of f12. 45 mm Phase One wide angle lens with focal plane shutter. The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back. The image has been cropped and straightened using Capture One.