Artist
Albrecht Durer
German
(1471 - 1528)
Title
Dragon with Seven Heads
Date
1498
Medium
Woodcut
Dimensions
39.3 x 28.2 cm
Image size
400 x 564 pixels
File size
124.2 KB
Full size image
(548 x 773 pixels, 242.3 KB)
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This is Albrecht Durer's version of Revelation 12, The Woman, the Child, and the Dragon. It's number 11 in a series of 16 prints that he created entitled The Apocalypse.
Here the the dragon stands before the Apocalyptic woman, his tail so enormous that it sweeps a third of the stars out of the sky. The woman is pregnant and the dragon is waiting for the child to be born so that he can eat it.
God can be seen in the sky above, ready to snatch the child before the dragon can carry out his plan. Saint Michael and his angels hover nearby ready to wage war on the dragon.
Saint Michael is successful and the dragon is cast out of Heaven and down to the Earth where he goes after the Apocalyptic woman again, this time attempting to destroy her by spewing a river of water from his mouth but again he fails.
Now more angry then ever the dragon (Satan) begins to wage war against all of her children, who are the believers and followers of Christ.
