This is a study for The Petition to the King, which was the second canvas in the series 'The Story of St George'. The figure to which it relates is in the foreground on the right side and represents one of the king's subjects who plead to be released from the scourge of the dragon, leading to the king's decision that the young maidens of his kingdom should draw lots to decide who should be sacrificed. In the following canvas, entitled Moritura, the king's daughter, the Princess Sabra, draws the fateful lot. The series was commissioned by the artist Myles Birket Foster for his house, The Hill, at Witley, and was produced with assistance from Charles Fairfax Murray in 1865-7. The canvases have been dispersed, with the two subjects referred to above in a private collection in the USA.
Provenance Property of a Charitable Trust