Judith dining with Holofernes

'On the left beneath the apple tree there is a servant with a goblet, behind him is a man with a beard (perhaps the artist).., then Bethulien, resembling the town of Eisenach with the Wartburg' [Aldenhoven 1890, No. 334]

[Exhib. Cat. Gotha 1994, 22]

'Selfportrait 1. beside the tree is the link between a selfportrait from 1508 (=Alphäusselbstbildnis) in the 'Holy Family', Vienna, Academy (of Art) and the portrait of the artist as an elderly man in the Uffizi, Florence from 1550'

[Rosenberg 1930, 157-160, Figs. 154,156]

'This painting and its pendant piece are of great importance for the study of Cranach, because the inclusion of a selfportrait, the figure on the left edge who appears to point at the viewer, allows the assumption that it is a work by Cranach himself. The quality of the work is comparible with other works selected from this period. On the other hand it is similar to the signed works of the elder son Hans (who must have contributed considerably to the workshop activity at this time), therefore even in this case it is not possible to distinguish between father and son.'

[Friedländer, Rosenberg 1932, 62 No. 176]

Cranach and his workshop depicted the subject of Judith in a whole range of paintings and with the exclusion of the two panels in Gotha all showed only a single half-length or full-length figure. As such the rich narrative embellishment, that continues in the background is an exception within Cranach's oeuvre. The self-portrait of the artist at the right edge of the painting next to the guests at the table is also exceptional. His looks out of the image at the viewer and points with his left hand at events, a gesture that is repeated by a blue clothed follower of Holofernes on the opposite side of the table. Self-confidently he reveals himself as the creator of the art work. The serpent insignia with the date 1531 was added above the portrait on the trunk of the apple tree. A motif , which as a symbol of knowledge, was probably not chosen without reason. The artist's self-portrait is similar to the panel in Schloss Stolzenfels that was probably painted in the same year. [...]

In addition to the positive connotations associated with the virtuous heroine the inclusion of an apple tree refers indirectly to Judith's seductive power. Cranach warns the viewer of the danger through the gesture made by his selfportrait and as such situates the story of Judith within the courtly context of the 'Weibermacht'. [...]

[Timo Trümper, in Exhib. Cat. Gotha, Kassel 2015, 272, 273]