The hagiography of Margaret is a series of great tragedies. She lost her mother when she was a child, was imprisoned, and was tortured because of her faith at the age of 15. Margaret was tormented by the devil in the shape of a dragon who later devoured her, which is pictured under her feet. As the story goes, Margaret was imprisoned for her repudiation to marriage. While captive, Margaret prayed for a vision of the enemy she was to face; her prayer was answered, and a devil appeared to her in the form of a dragon and swallowed her whole. Yet while inside the belly of the dragon, Margaret made the sign of the cross, and the dragon proceeded to expel her, rendering it asunder. Thereafter, this devil emerged again, now in the form of a black demon. Margaret forcefully caught and attacked the demon, and triumphantly defeated it. According to the Golden Legend, she stated, “Lie still, thou fiend, under the feet of a woman.” Through her difficult life circumstances, her devotion and belief in Christ persevered. In this particular sixteenth- century Spanish fresco, Margaret’s face is serene and triumphant, with a posture of power and confidence as she emerges from the dragon’s stomach. Her right hand holds a bucket and a thistle, representing her life as a shepherdess and her love for the countryside, while her left hand holds the cross and makes the sign of the blessing. In the Western tradition, Margaret is commonly portrayed with a belt, which has been interpreted to ease the pain of childbirth, and is the patron saint of midwives.