The Story
The beheading of Holofernes by Judith is recounted in the deuterocanonical Book of Judith, and is the subject of many paintings and sculptures from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. In the story, Judith, a beautiful Jewish widow, enters the tent of Assyrian general Holofernes under the guise of seduction, as he was preparing to destroy Judith's home, the city of Bethulia. He passes out intoxicated and is decapitated by Judith; his head is taken away in a basket (often depicted as being carried away by an elderly female servant).
Artists have mainly chosen one of two possible scenes (with or without the servant): the decapitation, with Holofernes supine on the bed, or Judith the heroine holding or carrying the head. In European art, Judith is very often accompanied by her maid at her shoulder, which serves to distinguish her from Salome, who also carries her victim's head on a silver charger (plate).
Executed in Oil on linden, measuring 35 1/4 x 24 3/8 in. (89.5 x 61.9 cm), the surface rewards close looking. Lucas Cranach the Elder builds the composition through layered glazes and a tightly controlled palette, letting cool shadows recede so that the warm, lit passages step forward. The brushwork shifts from the precise to the almost dissolved — a hallmark of mature Baroque practice.
“A silence so complete it becomes its own witness.”
