Salome is given the head of John the Baptist by the executioner

The painting Salome is given the head of John the Baptist by the executioner by Peter Paul Rubens was created in 1608. Executed in oil paint on a panel, the work measures 95 cm in height and 106.6 cm in width. It depicts the religious subject of the beheading of John the Baptist, featuring Salome and the executioner.

The artwork is currently held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections, where it is displayed at the Alte Pinakothek.

Peter Paul Rubens's oil painting Salome is given the head of John the Baptist by the executioner, created in 1608, is held by the Bavarian State Painting Collections. The work resides specifically in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. It is cataloged within the collection's inventory as a religious painting on panel, measuring 95 cm in height and 106.6 cm in width.

The sources provided do not contain specific information regarding the work's accession number or a detailed exhibition history.

Created in 1608, this oil painting on panel depicts the moment of Salome receiving John the Baptist's severed head from an executioner. It was painted by Peter Paul Rubens, a leading figure of the Flemish Baroque known for his dynamic compositions and mastery of the human form. The work is housed in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich as part of the Bavarian State Painting Collections. Its religious genre reflects Counter-Reformation themes of martyrdom and execution, emphasizing visceral drama and emotional intensity.

Scholarship highlights its innovative treatment of the beheading scene, blending sensuality with horror, while its provenance and stylistic analysis reinforce Rubens' influence on Baroque religious art.

Peter Paul Rubens' 1608 oil painting depicting the beheading of John the Baptist, housed in Munich's Alte Pinakothek, established a powerful visual precedent for the Salome motif in European art. Rubens' dramatic composition and rendering of violence influenced Baroque interpretations of the subject and contributed to the enduring fascination with Salome in Western visual culture, particularly in works exploring female agency and sacrificial imagery.

Peter Paul Rubens painted Salome is given the head of John the Baptist by the executioner in 1608. Executed in oil on canvas, the work belongs to the Flemish Baroque period and is now part of the Alte Pinakothek’s collection in Munich.