''Salome'', also known as ''Salome with the Head of John the Baptist'', is an oil on canvas painting by the Venetian painter

Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...

, made ''c.'' 1550. It is held in the collection of the

Museo del Prado The Museo del Prado ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It houses collections of Art of Europe, European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 20th ce ...

, in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

. It is not to be confused with other compositions of Salome and Judith by Titian.

Subject

Salome, in Jewish history, was the name borne by three women of the Herod dynasty. Titian depicts the daughter of

Herodias Herodias (; , ''Hērōidiás''; c. 15 BC – after AD 39) was a princess of the Herodian dynasty of Judea, Judaea during the time of the Roman Empire. Christian writings connect her with the Beheading of John the Baptist, execution of John the Ba ...

by her first husband Herod Philip. She was the wife successively of

Philip the Tetrarch Philip the Tetrarch (), sometimes called Herod Philip II by modern writers (see #Naming convention, "Naming convention") was the son of Herod the Great and his fifth wife, Cleopatra of Jerusalem. As a Tetrarchy (Judea), Tetrarch, he ruled over ...

and Aristobulus, son of

Herod of Chalcis Herod of Chalcis (died 48 CE), also known as Herod Pollio King of Chalcis, Herod V, and listed by the ''Jewish Encyclopedia'' as Herod II, was a son of Aristobulus IV, and the grandson of Herod the Great, Roman client king of Judaea. He was the ...

. This Salome is the only one of the three who is mentioned in the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

, and only in connection with the execution of

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

Herod Antipas Herod Antipas (, ''Hērṓidēs Antípas''; ) was a 1st-century ruler of Galilee and Perea. He bore the title of tetrarch ("ruler of a quarter") and is referred to as both "Herod the Tetrarch" and "King Herod" in the New Testament. He was a s ...

, pleased by her dancing, offered her a reward "unto the half of my kingdom"; instructed by Herodias, she asked for John the Baptist's "head in a charger".

History

The picture was painted about 1550. It was possibly once in the collection of

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. Charles was born ...

, and later entered the collection of

Charles II of Spain Charles II (6 November 1661 – 1 November 1700) was King of Spain from 1665 to 1700. The last monarch from the House of Habsburg, which had ruled Spain since 1516, he died without an heir, leading to a European Great Power conflict over the succ ...

. Crowe and Cavalcaselle called it "evidently hework of an imitator".Gronau 1904, p. 304.

Charles Ricketts Charles de Sousy Ricketts (2 October 1866 – 7 October 1931) was a British artist, illustrator, author and printer, known for his work as a book designer and typographer and for his costume and scenery designs for plays and operas. Ricketts ...

ascribed to the later 1560s supposed retouches by Titian upon the ''Salome'' of the Prado, which he considered "otherwise a poor studio variant" of the '' Lavinia with the Charger'', painted in the 1550s.Ricketts 1910, p. 147. Walter Gronau, with others, have thought it an original work by Titian.Falomir Faus 2014.

Analysis

The composition of the painting is similar to the portrait of Lavinia at Berlin. According to Georg Gronau, "The colouring is more brilliant, deeper, in the Madrid picture."

Provenance

* Collection of the 1st Marquess of Leganés, 1652–1655; *

Spanish Royal Collection The Spanish royal collection of art was almost entirely built up by the monarchs of the Habsburg family who ruled Spain from 1516 to 1700, and then the House of Bourbon, Bourbons (1700–1868, with a brief interruption). They included a number of ...

(purchased from the estate of the Marquess of Leganés, 1652–1655; *

Royal Alcázar of Madrid The Royal Alcázar of Madrid (Spanish: ''Real Alcázar de Madrid'') was a fortress located at the site of today's Royal Palace of Madrid, Madrid, Spain. The structure was originally built in the second half of the ninth century by the Muslims, ...

, 1666; * New Royal Palace of Madrid, "secretaría de Estado" Secretary of State" 1814–1818, no. 659?).

Gallery

References

Sources

* Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Salome". ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

''. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 85. * Falomir Faus, Miguel (2014)
"Salome"
''Museo Nacionel del Prado''. Retrieved 10 August 2022. * Gronau, Georg (1904). ''

''. London: Duckworth and Co; New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 304. * Lefort, Paul (1896). '' Les Musées de Madrid: Le Prado, San Fernando, L'Armeria''. Paris: Bureaux de la Gazette des Beaux-Arts. p. 16. * Neginsky, Rosina (2014).
Salome: The Image of a Woman Who Never Was
'. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 95–100, 120. * Ricketts, Charles (1910). ''

''. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd. pp. 147, 188. {{DEFAULTSORT:Salome 1550s paintings Paintings by Titian Paintings of Salome Paintings by Titian in the Museo del Prado