Judith Slaying Holofernes
Donatello, Giuseppe Lelli (cast maker)No image available
- Artist
-
Donatello
Firenze 1386/1387 – 1466 Firenze
Giuseppe Lelli
(cast maker)
Firenze
- Dated
- ca. 1465 (original), 1907 (cast)
- Classification
- sculpture, plaster cast
- Medium
- plaster cast
- Dimensions
- 268 cm
- Inv.no.
- Rg.180
- Department
- Sculptures - Plaster casts
- Current Location of the Original Artwork
- Italy, Florence, Palazzo Vecchio
Donatello's patron, Cosimo de’ Medici commissioned several sculptures from the sculptor to decorate the new Palazzo Medici. The scene from the Old Testament, the Judith Slaying Holofernes group was among them. Made of bronze, it was designed for the back garden. The masterpiece, as we know from a now lost inscription, had allegorical meaning representing Humility triumphing over Pride. The Museum purchased the plaster cast of the statue in 1907 and the copy was installed in the Renaissance Hall in 1909. It was probably lost during World War II, the current whereabouts of the artwork are unknown.