Art in CONTEXT

This panel is the earlier of two paintings in the Art Institute's collection that depicts the subject of Judith and Holofernes. Compared to the psychological concentration and pictorial economy of the Art Institute's Baroque example by Carlo Saraceni, this Renaissance work is characterized by a less analytical approach to mood and a more discursive telling of the biblical story. The story comes from the apocryphal Book of Judith in the Old Testament. The Jewish town of Bethulia was under siege by the Assyrian army and its general, Holofernes. When the residents were at the brink of capitulation, a beautiful widow, Judith devised a scheme for their deliverance. Dressing in her finest clothes, Judith left Bethulia with her maid and entered the Assyrian camp as an ostensible deserter. Holofernes found her a welcome addition to his camp, as much for her beauty as for her veiled promise to assist in the defeat of the Jews. After a banquet, at which Holofernes became drunk, the general lured the beautiful widow into his tent. He quickly fell asleep, however, and Judith seized the opportunity to cut off his head with his own sword. Together with her maid, who stuffed Holofernes' head into a bag, Judith stole back to Bethulia. Once apprised of Judith's heroic act, the Bethulian soldiers charged from the city and defeated the Assyrian army.

With Bethulia in the distance, Holofernes' camp to the right, and the climactic battle to the left, this panel provides a summary of the major localities and moments of the Judith story. The story proceeds from right to left, foreground to background, as Judith decapitates Holofernes, flees with her maid, and enters the city in the distance. In the background to the left, the Bethulian soldiers emerge from the city and advance to engage the Assyrian army. This "comic strip" manner of narration is typical of Florentine 15th century painting. Also typical are the balletic figures, their representation in contemporary dress, and the depiction of Bethulia as a walled, Italian town. The town actually resembles Florence, a city that often regarded the biblical Judith as a protector figure.

Although this work may originally have functioned as an independent painting, it is more likely that it formed one side of a decorated cassone (chest). In the 15th century, a pair of cassoni was traditionally given to brides. They were often adorned with scenes depicting the deeds of virtuous women from classical history and mythology, the Bible, or medieval literature; the story of Judith's heroic deliverance of Bethulia is a typical example. While the primary motivation of this practice was to enhance the aesthetic appeal of these chests, there must also have been an instructional aim in furnishing the domestic environment with representations of virtuous conduct. In later centuries, cassoni were often dismantled and their various panels sold separately on the art market. Such is probably the origin of this work as an independent painting.

Roger J. Crum

SUGGESTED READING:

Thornton, Peter. The Italian Renaissance Interior, 1400-1600. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1991.

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