Attributed to Cesare Dandini, After Cristofano Allori

Canvas relined with a fairly old lining which is still stable and effective. Paint surface is in good condition. There are still some nice impastos remaining in areas such as in the pillow lower right corner. However, in some places the reds (specifically in the lower part of Judith's red drapery) seem to have oxidized. There are some visible retouches in the drapery as well. Inspection under ultraviolet reveals an old opaque and dirty varnish. It also reveals that the painting was partially cleaned in the face of Judith, her maid, and in areas of the face of Holofernes. There are also retouches throughout the white areas and here and there throughout the rest of the composition. The painting will benefit from a careful cleaning and professional restoration. In an elaborately carved and gilt wood frame.
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This impressive painting is based on Allori's most famous and most repeated composition, the prime version of which is in the Pitti Palace, Florence.¹ 

Dandini was a generation younger than Cristofano Allori and also worked in Florence. He must have known one of the versions of Allori's Judith and Holofernes and it has been suggested, on stylistic grounds -- especially looking at the head of Judith -- that he is the author of the present painting.  Although the present composition is similar to the Pitti palace version, it is even closer to the version in the Liechtenstein collection, in which the artist also added a pattern of horizontal stripes to Judith's scarf.


1. For a full discussion of Allori's Judith and Holferenes see M.L. Chapell, Cristofano Allori, exhibition catalogue, Florence, Palazzo Pitti, 1984, pp. 78 - 81.