# The Youthful David [View the canonical artwork record]() ## Artwork - Artist: [ANDREA DEL CASTAGNO]() - Date: 1401-1450 - Technique: Tempera on leather on wood, width at bottom 115,6 x 41 cm ## Commentary The Youthful David c. 1450 Tempera on leather on wood, width at bottom 115,6 x 41 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington The unusual shape of this work is explained by its original use as a parade shield. Its painted scene is exceedingly rare -- most parade shields were decorated with simple coats of arms. This is, in fact, the only shield painted by a recognized master that has survived to the present day. It may have been carried in civic or religious processions or have been made as a sign of authority for a citizen-governor. Images of young David, who overcame seemingly insurmountable odds to kill the giant, were popular in fifteenth-century Florence, the smallest major power in Italy. The city saw itself threatened by such Goliaths as the pope, the duke of Milan, the king of Naples, and the doge of Venice. David's image is especially appropriate decoration for a shield since, throughout the Psalms, David's poetry echoes the notion of God as his shield: "His truth shall be thy shield and buckler" \(Ps. 91.4\). Like many early Renaissance artists, Castagno has presented the action and its outcome simultaneously: David holds the loaded sling, but already the head of the slain Goliath lies at his feet. David's energetic pose, based perhaps on an ancient statue, creates a strong contour that would have been clear and "legible" as the shield was carried. Nevertheless, the youth's body is well modeled, rounded with light and shadow to give a convincing likeness of a body in action. <P> <TABLE ALIGN=LEFT CELLPADDING=5 BORDER=1 WIDTH=320 BGCOLOR="\#99CCCC"> <TR VALIGN=MIDDLE><TD><IMG SRC="/support/gif/listen.gif" BORDER=0 VALIGN=MIDDLE> Suggested listening \(streaming mp3, 11 minutes\):<BR><A HREF="\#" onClick="w=window.open \('/music1/17\_cent/kuhnau\_goliath.html', 'newWin', 'scrollbars=yes,status=no,dependent=yes,screenX=0,screenY=0,width=350,height=350'\);w.opener=this;w.focus\(\);return true"><B>Johann Kuhnau: The Fight between David and Goliath \(No. 1 of the 6 Stories from the Bible illustrated in music\)</B></A> </TD></TR></TABLE> ## Related artworks - [Christ in the Sepulchre with Two Angels]() - [Christ in the Sepulchre with Two Angels \(synopia\)]() - [Crucifixion and Saints]() - [Crucifixion \(detail\)]() - [Crucifixion]() - [Crucifixion]() - [Deposition]() - [Dormition of the Virgin]() - [Dormition of the Virgin]() - [Dormition of the Virgin]() - [Famous Persons Cycle \(reconstruction\)]() - [Famous Persons: Dante Allighieri]() ## Attribution [Web Gallery of Art]()