The Archangel Michael of the Apocalypse
Russia, 17th century
the Archangel with wings outspread wearing a crown decorated with precious stones, sits astride a winged red horse, in his left hand holding a censer and a lance with cruciform terminal, and in his right the closed Book of Life, an arched rainbow spanning between them; he sounds a trumpet to signal the Day of Judgement as he transfixes the devil who crawls beneath the fore legs of his rearing horse, whilst behind Babylon is represented falling into the abyss; in the top left-hand corner, a cloud-borne image of a hand proffering a disc supporting an image of Christ Emmanuel above an altar: the background and raised borders stripped to the gesso
31.8 x 26cm (12 1/2 x 10 1/4in).
Footnotes