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Similarities Between Judith And Holofernes

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I will first employ the method of iconography to explore the figure of Judith in the art historical tradition, and how the depictions of other artists compare to that of Artemisia Gentileschi.
The theme of Judith and Holofernes takes up a larger space in Gentileschi’s oeuvre than any other subjects. At least five autographed versions of the subject have been preserved, three of which are rightly appraised as amongst her finest works. The subject is taken from the Book of Judith, which 5 was composed anonymously towards the end of the second century B.C and was a vastly popular subject in all art forms and periods. It tells the story of a Jewish widow who volunteers to rescue her 6 helpless people when the Assyrian general Holofernes lays …show more content…

Over the course of the meal he begins to desire her sexually, but having consumed copious amounts of wine, he falls asleep. Judith order Abra to stand guard outside while she, alone in his bedchamber, severs his head with a scimitar. She returns to
Bethulia victorious with the head of her victim, and remains until her death. 7 The story is possibly an allegorical one in which Judith is the personification of Judaism itself, with the name “Bethulia” being a possible variation of the Hebrew Beth Aloa, “house of god”.
Like the story of David, it’s an example of a case in which Israel, historically defined as frail and weak against her foes, survives due to intelligence and faith rather than strength. Both David and
Judith took heroic action on behalf of their people, both their victories culminated in decapitations as 2 symbols of the triumph of virtue and godliness over vice and corruption. In her depiction of the 8 subject, Gentileschi doubtlessly drew inspiration from Caravaggio’s Judith Beheading Holofernes
(Figure 2). His influence on her art is evident through her naturalism, shallow pictorial space, dramatic use of light, and monumental compositions. The environment in his Judith is similarly

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