Lions and Tigers on Canvas: From Medieval Dragons to Realistic PortraitsIn medieval bestiaries, the lion is not so much an animal as an allegory. It was depicted as a symbol of power, resurrection, and even Christ. But if you look at these drawings, you will not see a realistic beast. Lions in manuscripts often looked like whimsical creatures with manes resembling halos and bodies more like dogs. Tigers were drawn even more by hearsay: sometimes with stripes, sometimes without, often with heads resembling dragons.The Lion in the Middle Ages: A Symbol, Not a Zoological ObjectIn medieval art, the lion was one of the most popular animals. But artists of that time rarely saw live lions. They drew them from descriptions by travelers, from old mosaics, and, of course, from the canons of church symbolism. The lion was a symbol of Christ (as the \"Lion of Judah\"), a symbol of resurrection (it was believed that lion cubs are born dead and come to life on the third day), and also a symbol of power and royal dignity. Therefore, on miniatures and frescoes, the lion often looked like a heraldic animal: with a large mane, but with a face resembling a human, with an unnaturally straight back, and with a raised paw, like on coats of arms.The tiger in medieval bestiaries was even more fantastical. It was often depicted as a striped cat with huge teeth, but sometimes as a creature resembling a crocodile or even a dragon. Legends about tigers were told: for example, that if a tiger loses a cub, it will not rest until it finds it, and that hunters can trick it by throwing a mirror — the tiger supposedly takes its reflection for a cub and hesitates. These stories found reflection in art.The Renaissance: The First Steps Towards RealismIn the Renaissance, artists began to be interested in nature. They studied anatomy, made sketches from life, but there were few live tigers and lions in Europe. Therefore, they often relied on ancient sculptures and descriptions from books. Leonardo da Vin ... Read more