Attachment (1829) by Edwin Henry Landseer

This painting illustrates Sir Walter Scott’s poem “Helvellyn,” about a faithful dog that guarded his master’s body after he had fallen while mountain climbing. Though the body went undiscovered for three months, the dog stayed to keep away ravens and foxes that might have scavenged the remains. The painter dramatizes this scene through vivid contrasts of light and shadow and by placing the man’s body at the bottom of the composition, emphasizing the great height from which he fell.