St. Michael the Archangel (M 009) Postcard

Look closely! Clad in draped armor and shouldering a sword, St. Michael the Archangel is actually depicted by the engraver here holding a balance scale in his right hand. The scale is an allusion to St. Michael's role as weigher of souls at the Last Judgment. The scale, however, has been obscured by the colorist who painted his military cloak red. The result is an image that appears to look down from heaven with loving concern rather than judgment. It has been used as such throughout the St. Michael the Archangel COLLECTION (M 009). + Image Credit (M 009): Antique hand-colored devotional print of St. Michael the Archangel (N: 64) etched by F. Pischet, Linz, Austria, very early nineteenth century. From the designer's private collection of religious ephemera. + The letter "H" before the name "Michael" in the curtained nameplate is the abbreviation for "Heiliger" or "Saint (actually "Holy") in German. + Feast: September 29 + Prefer a different border color? The Color Palette postcard for this image provides suggested coordinating hues. Color Palette postcards are found in an image's associated COLLECTION and in the Special COLLECTION devoted just to color palettes.