Matteo Rosselli

Private collection, Germany;
With Piacenti Art Gallery, London;
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 17 December 1999, lot 55;
There purchased by the present collector.

F. Baldassari, La Pittura Del Seicento a Firenze: Indice degli artisti e delle loro opere, Milan 2009, p. 653;
S. Bellesi, Catalogo dei Pittori Fiorentini del '600 e '700, Florence 2009, vol. I, p. 241, reproduced vol. III, p. 269, fig. 1413.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This large and impressive painting is in beautiful condition. The texture of the paint layer and the freshness of the condition combine to make an unusually lively paint layer. There is a horizontal stretcher mark running across the center which has been retouched and there is a concentration of retouches in the lower left corner on the floor. Elsewhere however the condition is extremely good and the painting should be hung as is.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This work was executed by Matteo Rosselli during the early stages of his career and continues a long-standing Florentine tradition in the depiction of the subject matter. Throughout the seventeenth century, the story of Judith and Holofernes, which tells of the Jewish widow who decapitated an Assyrian general after stealing into his camp, seducing, and intoxicating him, served as an often repeated subject amongst Florentine artists. Its popularity was possibly rooted in a connection between the subject and Florentine civic pride, which may possibly have stemmed from Donatello's sculpture of 1460, a masterpiece of the same subject. Donatello's work, which stood outside the Palazzo Vecchio, was inscribed on its pedestal: "Kingdoms fall through luxury [sin], cities rise through virtues. Behold the neck of pride severed by the hand of humility." From this moment, the image of Judith was used as a metaphor for the protectors of Florence, the Medici, and subsequently for the civic power and pride of Florence. It was also obviously seen as a symbol of the heroism of women, evidenced by the self-portraits of Lavinia Fontana and Artemesia Gentileschi as Judith.

This is a representative example of Rosselli's early style, during which time he excelled in the depiction of richly coloured, and sumptuously detailed fabrics, as can be seen here in Judith's luxurious robe. A very similar fabric design can be seen in Rosselli's Adoration of the Magi (offered New York, Christie's, 15 May 1996, lot 127). When last sold, Francesca Baldassari dated the present picture to circa 1600, a moment when Rosselli was still influenced by his teachers Jacopo Ligozzi (1546-1627) and Gregorio Pagani (1558-1605). By 1608, Rosselli had become one of the major artists working in Florence, and was even commissioned to work for the Medici. It was at this point that his influence within Florence was at its height, and several painters who would later prove to be successful in their own right were working under him, including Jacopo Vignali and Lorenzo Lippi. One can see in these latter artists' work the influence of Rosselli, as depicted here in Judith's elongated face, heavy eyelids, and pensive expression.