Judith with the Head of Holofernes

Judith with the Head of Holofernes

Title

Judith with the Head of Holofernes

[Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie, revised 2019]

Painting on limewood

Medium

Painting on limewood

[Klisińska-Kopacz et al. 2022]

Painting on wood

[Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie, revised 2019]

Directly addressing the viewer and shown three-quarter length, Judith wields a sabre in her right hand with the monogram ‘RXC’, while in her left hand she cradles Holofernes's head, concealing its gruesome severed neck. She is presented as the epitome of beauty and high fashion, as understood at the courts

Directly addressing the viewer and shown three-quarter length, Judith wields a sabre in her right hand with the monogram ‘RXC’, while in her left hand she cradles Holofernes's head, concealing its gruesome severed neck. She is presented as the epitome of beauty and high fashion, as understood at the courts of the dukes of Saxony during the early sixteenth century. Her hair is bound up. She wears a plumed red beret over a calotte of gold and silver threads decorated with pearls, a style in vogue around 1530. Her dress is red with golden orange brocade and puffed sleeves. Around her neck Judith wears a gold collar and two massive short chains with flattened links, a further two long gold chains are draped over her chest. This combination of collar and chains was particular to the court of the Saxon dukes and continued until the 1540s. The rings on Judith's fingers poke through the slits of her thin silk gloves.

[cda 2019]

Attribution
Workshop Lucas Cranach the Elder

Attribution

Workshop Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie, revised 2019] [Klisińska-Kopacz et al. 2022]

Production date
about 1530

Production date

about 1530

[Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie, revised 2019] [Klisińska-Kopacz et al. 2022]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 61 x 40 x 4 cm

Dimensions

Signature / Dating

none

Inscriptions and Labels
  • on the blade of the sword near the hilt: 'RXC'
    [cda 2019]

Inscriptions and Labels

Inscriptions, Badges:

    • on the blade of the sword near the hilt:

  • 'RXC'

  • [cda 2019]

Owner
Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie
Repository
Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie
Location
Nysa
CDA ID
PL_MN_MNa-SA101
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/PL_MN_MNa-SA101/

Provenance

There is no information about the provenance of the painting. It is only known that it was donated to the Museum by a local military group in 1945.
[Muzeum Powiatowe w Nysie, revised 2019]

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Klisińska-Kopacz et al. 2022
AuthorAnna Klisińska-Kopacz, Michał Obarzanowski, Piotr Frączek, Magdalena Moskal-del Hoyo, Marco Gargano, Tomasz Goslar, Filip Chmielewski, Jolanta Dudała, Julio M. del Hoyo-Meléndez
TitleAn analytical investigation of a wooden panel painting attributed to the workshop of Lucas Cranach the Elder
JournalJournal of Cultural Heritage
IssueMay–June 2022
Year of Publication2022
Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2022.03.010
Pages186-194
Show Literature
  • Judith with the Head of Holofernes, about 1530

Images

Compare images
  • overall
  • irr
  • uv_light

Technical studies

2022Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • X-radiography
  • UV-light photography
  • Instrumental material analysis
  • Other imaging techniques
  • Micro-sampling / cross-sections
  • Dendrochronology / identification of wood species
  • Stereomicroscopy

Support

Methods: UV-light, infrared reflectography, x-radiography, XRF analysis, stereomicroscope, SEM and carbon dating

The panel consists of vertically aligned boards idenified as limewood (after a comparison with reference collection using both optical microscopy and SEM). Carbon dating results confirmed the wood was not from a more recent period: c. 1297 -1406 and 1399 - 1450.

Fibrous material applied to reinforce the panel was visible in the x-radiograph.

Ground and Imprimatura

The ground appears white and contains calcium carbonate (XFR spectrum:calcium).

Underdrawing

Underdrawing primarily with fluid carbon-based black medium and brush, particularly visible along the edge of the dress and the breast; an outline defining Judith’s forehead with a metal /hard point was also visible; various alterations were made to the initial design, like in Judith’s left hand, as well as small changes in the neckline, the right hand, the hilt of the sword and Holoferne's eyes, beard and forehead.

Paint Layers and Gilding

The following pigments were inferred from XRF analysis:

lead white, lead tin yellow, vermilion, copper pigment (azurite?) and vegetable black (carbon black) or animal (bone black), red and yellow ochre, chalk

[For full report see: Klisińska-Kopacz et al. 2022]

2019Scientific analysis

  • Dendrochronology / identification of wood species

Identification of wood species: limewood (Tilia sp.)

[unpublished technichal examination, Del Hoyo 2019]

2019Scientific analysis

  • Instrumental material analysis

XRF analysis detected elements allowing the following pigments to be identified:

lead white; lead-tin yellow; vermilion; pigments containing iron: yellow and red ochre; azurite; bone black and a black pigment of vegetable origin

[unpublished technical examination, Del Hoyo 2019]

2019 - Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • X-radiography

- the legibility of the X-radiograph is affected by the presence of a cradle attached to the reverse and used to stabilise the wooden support

- lead white is visible in the lighter areas like the skin, and the details of the dress are described with clear brushstrokes

- in the light parts (mainly on Judith’s neckline), small paint losses are visible, similarly along the crack line

[unpublished technical examination, Del Hoyo, 2019]

Condition Reports

Date1984

Numerous cracks in the paint layers; flaking - poor adhesion between the paint and ground layers; the paint layer is crumbling and exhibits mechanical damage; vertical cracks in the paint layer in the direction of the grain; numerous fills (oil-based), retouches; some blanching and extensive surface dirt.

  • examined by R. Krzeminski

Conservation History

Date1984

Numerous cracks in the paint layers; flaking - poor adhesion between the paint and ground layers; the paint layer is crumbling and exhibits mechanical damage; vertical cracks in the paint layer in the direction of the grain; numerous fills (oil-based), retouches; some blanching and extensive surface dirt.

Scope of the treatment carried out in 1984

  • consolidation of the flaking paint with a solution of polyvinyl acetate,

  • surface cleaning of both the recto and verso of the panel

  • removal of varnish and overpaint; filling losses with chalk-resin putties, applicatioin of a matt varnish to protection of the painted surface

  • conservation treatment by R. Krzeminski

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'Judith with the Head of Holofernes', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/PL_MN_MNa-SA101/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'Judith with the Head of Holofernes', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/PL_MN_MNa-SA101/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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