Salome Asking Herod for the Head of Saint John the Baptist
Giovanni di Paolo·1455–60
Historical Context
Salome Asking Herod for the Head of Saint John the Baptist (1455–60) captures the climactic moment of the Baptist narrative with controlled dramatic tension. Giovanni di Paolo sets the scene in a banquet hall drawn from Sienese palace architecture, with richly dressed courtiers arranged in the deep spatial recession he adapted from Lorenzetti. The figure of Salome, elegantly poised, makes her terrible demand with the formal courtesy of a court lady, underscoring the contrast between worldly refinement and moral depravity. This psychological dimension — evil dressed in beauty — is characteristic of Giovanni di Paolo's approach to narrative painting.
Technical Analysis
The rich tempera colors and gold accents create an opulent setting appropriate to Herod's feast. Giovanni di Paolo's characteristic angular figures are arranged across the composition with clear narrative gestures, while the architectural setting demonstrates his distinctive approach to spatial construction.
Provenance
Edourd Aynard, Lyons, by 1907 [see Perkins 1907]; sold Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, December 1–4, 1913 no. 51, to Kleinberger, Paris, as agent for Martin A. Ryerson (died 1932), Chicago, 1914 [an entry for June 18, 1914, in Ryerson’s notebook reads: “Bot [sic] of Kleinberter, Paris, 6 panels by Giovanni di Paolo (purchased by him at Aynard sale for 160 000 fr + 10%);” Art Institute Archives]; on loan to the Art Institute from 1914; bequeathed to the Art Institute, 1933.
