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The Beheading of St. John the Baptist

The Beheading of St. John the Baptist

attributed to (French, 1798–1863)
attributed to (French, 1821–1892)
Dateca. 1838
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 13 11/16 × 17 3/8 in. (34.8 × 44.2 cm)
Frame: 21 1/8 × 17 3/8 in. (53.6 × 44.2 cm)
Credit LineR. T. Miller Jr. Fund
Object number1943.224
Status
Not on view
More Information
In 1838, Delacroix was awarded the commission to paint the Library of the Palais Bourbon in Paris. This is the oil sketch for one of the five spandrels (pendentives) in the fourth cupola of the library's ceiling. Each spandrel is dedicated to a branch of human accomplishment and knowledge: Science, Philosophy, Law, Theology, and Poetry. The fourth spandrel represents Theology, and comprises several scenes from the Old and New Testament of the Bible, including the beheading of St. John the Baptist. As recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, Salome, daughter of Herodias, at her mother's prompting, demanded John's head on a charger as a reward for pleasing King Herod with her dancing. The bloody, disfigured body of John lies crumpled at the feet of the executioner who thrusts the severed head onto the charger.
Exhibition History
Paintings and Drawings and Prints by Eugene Delacroix
  • The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (March 20, 1930 - April 20, 1930 )
Paintings and Drawings from Five Centuries: Collection Allen Memorial Art Museum
  • M. Knoedler & Co., Inc., New York (February 3, 1954 - February 21, 1954 )
French Masters, Rococo to Romanticism
  • UCLA Art Galleries, Los Angeles (March 15, 1961 - April 18, 1961 )
Impressionism: 100 Years
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (December 14, 1974 - January 19, 1975 )
French Nineteenth-Century Oil Sketches: David to Degas
  • The William Hayes Ackland Memorial Art Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC (March 5, 1978 - April 30, 1978 )
Director's Choice: 19th Century European Paintings and Sculpture
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (November 9, 1986 - January 4, 1987 )
From Turner to Picasso: Masterworks from the Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (May 27, 1988 - September 18, 1988 )
Focus on the Permanent Exhibition: Audrey Flack
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (November 20, 1993 - March 20, 1994 )
Figure to Non-Figurative: The Evolution of Modern Art in Europe and North America, 1830-1950
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (August 23, 2002 - June 9, 2003 )
Collections
  • European
  • On View
This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator. Noticed a mistake? Have some extra information about this object? Please contact us.