Salome (Fragment)

'In various biblical depictions from the 16th century the tragedy of St John the Baptist was used to illustrate the transgression of a ruler, tyranny and catholic idolatry. [1] This usurpation of the biblical story, in particular from a protestant perspective, is especially noticeable with regards the ernestine elector, who identified himself with St John the Baptist. His unwavering belief, which led to his imprisonment and martyrdom offered a welcome parallel to the fate of Elector Johann Friedrich the Magnanimous of Saxony. He had adopted the first professor to Christianity as his patron saint. Johann Friedrich who was taken prisoner while fighting for the protestant faith against the catholic emperor was condemned to death in 1547. This sentence was changed to life imprisonment upon the intervention on his part by influential princes. A connection between Johann Friedrich's life and his martyrdom for his beliefs is also established in the commemorative text on his death in 1554. [2]

Similar to the image in Gotha is a painting in Budapest (about 1526/30), which also shows Salome against a dark background and divorced of a narrative context . [3] The luminous red, slitted dress differs in numerous details, but exhibits a similar arrangement of the folds. Instead of a feathered hat Salome wears a bride's wreath in her hair. Various female half-length figures quote the upper section of the Gotha panel, but do not compare in painterly quality and can be attributed to the circle or followers of Cranach. [4] In addition a faithful copy of the painting by Christian Richter (about 1640/50) is preserved in Braunschweig and documents the long-lasting interest in Cranach's pictorial invention. [5] According to Schade the work in Gotha can be attributed to a follower of Cranach and was created about 1600. However, the style and painterly quality of the panel confirmed by the recent conservation treatment (2014/15) as well as the numerous copies make it worth while to question this attribution and the late dating. [6] An earlier dating is supported by the original dimensions of the panel that correspond to one of the preferred standard sizes employed in the Cranach workshop between c. 1520 and c. 1535, and the suppport material (fir wood), which was frequently used in the second decade of the 16th century.[7] The date uncovered on the upper section during a dubious restoration does not help in answering the question regarding the date of creation. [8] In 1972 the dark background was considered not authentic and removed. This intervention took into account a considerable loss of original paint along the contours. The portrait of Salome now appears against an odd, patchy light backdrop, that appears very uncharacteristic for Cranach. The Cranach insignia and date '1549' was apparently uncovered to the right of the head during this treatment. Recent technical examination of the lower section can now prove without doubt that this panel never had a white background and that this is the light ground and therefore the authenticity of the uncovered inscription must also be questioned.

The painting of Salome in Gotha is from ernestine property and arrived as a dowery from Duchess Sophie of Saxony-Altenburg (1619-1680) from Altenburg in Gotha, where it is first recorded in1644. [9] Such a prominent provenance speaks in favour of a new evaluation of the panel.'

[1] Washof 2007, 331

[2] Exhib. Cat. Gotha 1994, 162, no. 2.49

[3] Cranach the Elder, about 1526/30, Szépmüvészeti Múzeum, Inv. no. 145, see Exhib. Cat. Brussels 2010, 213, no. 115

[4] Cranach follower, 'Female Half-length Figure with a Feathered Hat,' oil on wood, 62 x 52.5 cm, whereabouts unknown (Dorotheum 2010); Monogrammist HVK, 'Female Half-length Figure with a Feathered Hat,' oil on wood, 23 x 19.2 cm, whereabouts unknown (Koller 2007); Cranach follower, 'Female Half-length Figure with a Feathered Hat,' 17th century, 58.5 x 51.5 cm, whereabouts unknown (Boisgirard Antonini, Paris, 13. August 2006); Cranach workshop, 'Female Half-length Figure with a Feathered Hat', 16th century, Staatsgalerie im Schloss Johannisburg, Aschaffenburg; Cranach workshop, 'Female Half-length Figure with a Feathered Hat', oil on wood, 57 x 50 cm, Louisville (Kentucky), Speed Art Museum.

[5] Christian Richter, Salome with the Head of St John the Baptist, Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Braunschweig. See Jacoby 2002, 206 ff.

[6] The conservation treatment was generously financed by the Freundeskreis Kunstsammlungen Schloss Friedenstein Gotha e. V.

[7] Heydenreich 2007, 43 and 47 f.

[8] Jacoby 2002, 209

[9] Exhib. Cat. Gotha 2001, 49.1

[Exhib. Cat. Gotha 2015, 278-279, no. 99] (translated from German, cda 2019]

'The joints and the craquelure of this panel correspond to the fragment in gotha depicting St John's bowl, confirming that these two fragments originally belonged to a painting of Salome and the severed head of St John. This panel (47.6 cm wide) is now considerably narrower than the fragment in Gotha (57 cm), and has been trimmed by c. 5 cm on each side. The edge of the ground application is partially preserved along the top of the panel and at the lower edge, the depiction with the bowl of St John is aligned, with only the minimal loss of a few millimetres walong the saw cut. This allow us to reconstruct the original size of the painting, approx. 87 x 57 cm.

In 1936 the painting was cut into two sections, and this fragment was also thinned from c. 9 mm to c. 4 mm. The original black paint of the background was then removed. Isolated traces of green paint indicate that the background may have been green at some stage. Now the exposed original ground layer appears yellow in colour. The inscription '1549' and the insignia are applied directly on this layer, confirming that they were only added after the black background paint had been removed and are therefore not original. It is not known if this inscription refers to a date, which was once on the black background paint.

The original size of the panel corresponds to the standard ‘D’ format frequently used in the Cranach workshop. The type of wood on the lower fragment in Gotha was identified as fir. This wood type was occasionally used for making supports in the Cranach workshop in the period around 1515-25, particularly for altarpieces.

The underdrawing exhibits thin, fluid lines and striking short parallel hatching that differ significantly from those found in works unanimously attributed to Lucas Cranach the Elder by researchers. In the 1530s and 1540s, underdrawing created using a fluid medium with corresponding narrow lines are not typical in works of Cranach's workshop. In our opinion the underdrawing on this panel may be by a painter outside Cranach's workshop.

The pigments found were frequently used in the Cranach workshop, as well as in other painters' workshops from both the early modern period and more recently. The presence of the pigment lead tin yellow suggests that the painting was created before 1750.

Several of the pictorial elements depicted are also represented in other Cranach paintings, for example, the red hat with the feather resembles the hat worn by Omphale in Hercules at Omphale, Braunschweig, dated 1537. The head of St. John on the fragment in Gotha, the head of Holofernes on the panel with Judith and Holofernes in Güstrow, the head of St. John in the depiction of Salome in Budapest and another fragment with the head of St. John in a private collection recall a common prototype. Consequently, the artist who developed the present pictorial composition was very familiar with the repertoire of forms employed by the Cranach workshop around 1535 – 1545.

Differences are evident in the painterly execution of various details, such as jewellery, shirt collars and eyes, to works firmly attributed to the Cranach workshop. Even if an assessment of the painterly quality is compromised by damage and retouching, in our opinion the execution lacks the quality of works that scholars unanimously attribute to Lucas Cranach the Elder.

It is possible that this painting was produced in Cranach’s Wittenberg workshop, however the unusual support, the underdrawing and the painterly execution could indicate that it was created outside the workshop and later. Examination of this fragment depicting Salome leads us to the conclusion that it is a very damaged work by a workshop member or follower of Lucas Cranach the Elder from between about 1535 and 1600. We recommend further examination.'

[unpublished examination report Heydenreich, Gras, 21.10.2024] (translated from German, cda 2024)