The body of the murdered Assyrian general Holofernes forms the focal point in this oil sketch, part of Luca Giordano's last cycle of paintings. Holofernes led an army that besieged the city of Bethulia, home to the beautiful Jewish widow Judith. Having accepted the general's invitation to dine, Judith beheaded him when he fell into an inebriated sleep. Standing as the central figure in this painting, Judith displays the trophy head to rouse the dispirited Israelites.
1954/12/10
In auction of “Tableaux Anciens; Tableaux Modernes; Première partie; de Madame X…” at Hôtel Drouot, Paris, France, December 10, 1954, lot A, attributed to Jean-Baptiste Tiepolo [1]
1954 - 1965
Wildenstein and Co. Inc., New York, NY, purchased at auction of “Tableaux Anciens; Tableaux Modernes; Première partie,” Hôtel Drouot, Paris, December 10, 1954, lot A [2]
1965 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Wildenstein & Co. Inc. [3]
Notes:
[1] See the auction catalog [“Tableaux Anciens; Tableaux Modernes; Première partie, Additif: Deux peintures attribuées à Jean-Baptiste Tiepolo (Lots A-B), de Madame X…” Hôtel Drouot, Paris, December 10, 1954, lot no. A].
[2] The two paintings attributed to Jean-Baptiste Tiepolo were sold after the sale of the collection of Madame X, by another auctioneer, Mr. André Collin, who sold these paintings to Wildenstein & Co. , according to a letter from Wildenstein & Co. dated February 11, 2015 [SLAM document files].
[3] Bill of sale from Wildenstien & Co., Inc. dated May 17, 1965 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, May 10, 1965.
