Knight errant

Michał Elwiro Andriolli was born in Vilnius on 14 November 1836. He is one of the leading representatives of the creators of Polish book and press illustration of the 19th century. His father, Francesco, was an Italian who ended up in Russian captivity. Then he settled in Vilnius, where he worked as a small restorer. Elwiro showed artistic abilities early on, and studied illustration under Antoni Zalewski. Defying his father's wish, which was to study medicine, he chose the Academy of Fine Arts in St Petersburg. Wishing to continue his education, he went to Rome, where he met the son of the famous poet Adam Mickiewicz - Władysław. He collaborated with such magazines as "L'Illustration", "Tygodnik Ilustrowany", "Tygodnik Powszechny", "Kłosy" and "Wędrowiec".

With the spread of lithography, the love of collecting views of ancient architecture became popular. During his artistic journeys, Andriolli made drawing notes, which he later processed in his studio, adding figures and changing the view of nature. He knew Lithuania very well, its most beautiful surroundings, monuments and ruins. He preferred active recreation, hence his inclination to hike and horse riding. An important part of the genre scene depicting a woman bending over an injured man is a castle. As Andriolli wrote: "The old castle has the power to seize me unheard of, and let there be rocks beside it - I am lost!".

A lively interest in the architecture of castles was in keeping with the interests of the period, and was also an expression of a desire to save history from oblivion. The scene combines Andriolli's fondness for fairy-tale stylistics and moralistic themes.