Saint George 1877

Edward Burne-Jones painted this vision of Saint George in oil paints on canvas. The conventional reading is that this is a work of fine art. But consider how this image draws on armor-making traditions. The metallic effect is beautifully achieved with layers of paint, but imagine the physical labor involved in making real armor. Each piece would have been hammered, shaped, and polished by a skilled artisan. It served as protection, but also as a symbol of status, signifying the wealth and power required to commission and maintain such a suit. Burne-Jones was fascinated by medieval craftsmanship, and here, he evokes that world through his meticulous technique. Yet the painting itself is a product of its own time, reflecting the Victorian era's fascination with the past. By focusing on the material culture embedded in this image, we can appreciate how Burne-Jones’s painting blurs the lines between fine art, craft, and the social realities of labor and class.