(Antwerp 1581–1642)
The Feast of Herod with Salome and the head of St. John the Baptist (Matthew 14, 3.11),
oil on panel, 33 x 43.5 cm, framed

Provenance:
Belgian private collection.

We are grateful to Dr Ursula Härting, who has confirmed the painting to be an authentic work by Frans Franckens II having examined the original. The painting is accompanied by a written certificate. Dr Härting writes, “The painting, known to me in the original ... is an early work by the Flemish small figure painter, Francken II (1581–1642). The artist himself appears as a guest at table to the extreme right. He looks confidently in the direction of the viewer, wearing a beret with a plume of feathers. The banqueting table is the main focus of the composition with its swan pie, salt shaker and yellow gold goblet. Herod invited court officials, officers and the most prominent citizens of Galilee to a banquet. He was so delighted with his daughter’s dancing that he decided to fulfil her every wish, even if she were to want half of his realm. On the advice of her mother, the young girl demanded the head of St. John the Baptist, whose decapitation is shown to the left at the rear of the picture. Following the Biblical story, Francken shows Salome as an innocent handmaid, whilst Herodias is depicted as the mastermind behind the beheading with a darkish face and coarse facial features. The picture must have been executed before 1610, when Frans II frequently returned to this subject matter. Details of costume, such as Francken’s ruff and Salome’s cuffs, belong to the early stage of development of Francken’s oeuvre, as do the impasto application of colour and the table set parallel to the picture frame. The lively gestural language of the protagonists, even at this small scale, show the very narrative nature of this subject matter, and is always a characteristic of his compositions...”.