The Feast of Herod. Salome Bringing the Head of St John the Baptist on a Charger by Unknown

About this work

Subject & Meaning

This scene is rich in symbolic weight, reflecting themes of temptation, moral corruption, and the consequences of rash oaths within a religious context.

The painting portrays Salome receiving the severed head of John the Baptist on a silver platter, a moment drawn from the biblical narrative of the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist. This scene is rich in symbolic weight, reflecting themes of temptation, moral corruption, and the consequences of rash oaths within a religious context. The composition emphasizes the dramatic tension of the gesture, underscoring the narrative’s moral and spiritual implications.

The work belongs to the religious art genre, aligning with its devotional and didactic purpose in 17th-century visual storytelling.

The depiction draws directly on the Gospel of Mark’s account of Salome’s dance and the subsequent execution of John the Baptist, a story frequently used in Christian iconography to illustrate the perils of uncontrolled desire and the fickleness of power.

Technique & Style

The Feast of Herod. Salome Bringing the Head of St John the Baptist on a Charger is executed in oil paint on a canvas support. This work functions as a copy of a painting by Peter Paul Rubens, adhering to the religious art genre.

The composition depicts Salome presenting the head of John the Baptist on a charger. The physical dimensions of the canvas measure 172.6 cm in height and 237.9 cm in width.

History & Provenance

The painting The Feast of Herod. Salome Bringing the Head of St John the Baptist on a Charger is a 17th-century oil-on-canvas work measuring 172.6 × 237.9 cm. It is identified as a copy after Peter Paul Rubens, based on his original composition The Feast of Herod.

The work has been part of the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen since at least the date of its Wikidata record, which establishes its institutional ownership without specifying prior provenance or commission details. No documented evidence regarding the original commission, early ownership history, or precise dating of this copy is provided in the sources.

The painting is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it is also located. The work is identified as a copy of a painting by Peter Paul Rubens titled The Feast of Herod. It is executed in oil paint on canvas and depicts Salome with the head of John the Baptist.

The dimensions of the artwork are recorded as 1726.0 cm in height and 2379.0 cm in width. The provided sources do not contain information regarding a specific inventory or accession number, nor do they list any exhibitions in which the work has been displayed.

Overview

The oil painting depicts a bustling banquet scene in which a woman in an elaborate gown stands centrally, presenting a silver platter that bears a severed head. Around her, a crowd of richly dressed figures watches with a mixture of shock and curiosity, while a child kneels nearby and a hat‑wearing man leans forward. Tall windows and gilded architectural details frame the interior, emphasizing the drama of the moment.

Context

The painting belongs to a tradition of Baroque‑era religious and historical subjects that dramatize momentous events with theatrical intensity. By placing the gruesome act within a lavish banquet, the artist aligns the work with contemporary interests in moral narrative, courtly spectacle, and the visual power of contrast.