St Michael and the Dragon by Cimabue

This depiction of Saint Michael vanquishing the dragon is part of Cimabue's fresco cycle in the Upper Church of the Basilica of San Francesco in Assisi, painted around 1277-1280. As one of the most ambitious decorative programs of the late thirteenth century, the Assisi frescoes established Cimabue as the leading painter of his generation. The archangel Michael was particularly venerated in Franciscan spirituality, and Cimabue's dynamic rendering of the heavenly battle marks a departure from static Byzantine compositions.

Executed in true fresco with secco finishing details, Cimabue's work demonstrates his characteristic approach to monumental figure painting with bold modeling and dramatic drapery. The extensive oxidation of the lead white pigments has caused the famous tonal reversal visible in many Assisi frescoes, creating a ghostly negative effect.