A Tale about the White Old Man

Episodic painting about the White Old Man. In the centre he wields a large curved sword as he fights a dragon from horseback. He is bareheaded, bald, with a long grey beard, dressed in a red robe lined with blue and green, a yellow sash and boots; the horse is brown with red harness. Above are three more adventures in miniature: catching an eagle in his hands from horseback, chasing two wolves with a whip, seated with a pipe at the feet of a deity, robed, with a flaming trident and scarves. Below are horses, two wolves, a lamb, eagle and scroll clouds on black. Polychrome with blue cloth mount.

Collection Information

These objects are only a part of our collections, of which there are more than 350,000 objects. This information comes from our collections database. Some of this is incomplete and there may be errors. This part of the website is also still under construction, so there may be some fields repeated or incorrectly formatted information.

The database retains language taken from historical documents to help research. Please note that some records may feature language and reflect systems of thinking that are outdated and offensive. The database also includes information on objects that are considered secret or sacred by some communities.

If you have any further information about objects in our collections, can suggest corrections to our information or if you see content requiring immediate action, please contact us: enquiry@horniman.ac.uk