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"St. George Slaying the dragon"
written by Ustinian Tilov
Catalog # 1.5
Medium: tempera on wood.
Hand-made according to the
Bulgarian Iconographic tradition and
techniques.
Possible heights:
A) 19 - 21 cm
B) 25 - 27 cm
C) 38 - 40 cm
As for the width, the proportions of the original
icon will be kept.
Kremikovtsi Monastery, near Sofia.
Tempera on wood. 87.5 x 61.5 cm.
Now at the Old Bulgarian Art Department
of the National Art Gallery
Here St. George is painted according to the
iconographic scheme most frequently used in
Bulgaria: Riding a white horse to the right.
He wears traditional garments - a short blue tunic,
broun armour and a red mantle, and carriesa
quiver, bow and arrows and a long lance with which
he slays the dragon. The scene depicts St. George's
most famous miracle - aving the King's daughter
from the dragon, who prevented the town's
inhabitants from drawing water, demanding a
human sacrifice each time. The agitated lake is
painted against a smooth red background. The brown
dragon is in the water, its tail coiled
around the horse's hind legs. According to
the Saint's life, the dragon was tamed by
"the sign of the cross", and the Princess
tied it with a rope, and led it to the
King. Here she is standing at the gate
of the city tower. The King, the Queen
( and yet another figure) watch the
event from the top. Since the cult
of St. George was widespread in Bulgaria,
he has been painted on a large number of icons,
often on horseback. In Bulgarian Medieval
art he hardly ever appears as a martyr
( except in certain scenes of his life and
in later paintings ). He is most frequently shown
on horseback, slaying the dragon and
saving the Princess, that being the most
popular episode of his life. The various popular
interpretations of the subject have no
doubt influenced the iconography of the images,
particularly of the dragon, the symbol of evil,
which in the people's imagination assumed bizarre
shapes. The closest parallels to this icon,
in terms of facial type and structure, are observed in the apostle's frieze in the church of Berende,
near Radomir, built in the 17 th century.
The background is in four colors:gold at the top,
followed by black, green and finally red.
There is a donor's inscription painted
in white letters over black.
"This icon was painted with the means
of Hieromonk Vassiliy in the
year 7105 ( or 1667 AD ).
Remember, O Lord, Thy slaves
the donors Petko, Peter, Todor.
" The icon is surrounded by two rows
of a leaflike ornament.