Judith and the Infant Hercules

The Master of the Mansi Magdalen painted this Judith and the Infant Hercules around 1515, an unusual combination of the biblical heroine with a classical mythological subject that reflects the period's eclectic mixing of sacred and classical themes in learned decorative programs. Judith with the head of Holofernes was the most popular Old Testament heroine in Renaissance painting, her act of righteous assassination making her a symbol of civic virtue and female heroism. The combination with an infant Hercules suggests an allegorical program that juxtaposed the biblical and classical traditions of virtuous strength, perhaps in a humanist domestic context where such learned combinations would demonstrate the patron's knowledge of both scriptural and classical sources.

The unconventional pairing of Old Testament and classical mythological figures suggests a humanist program. The refined technique and idealized figure types are characteristic of this anonymous master's distinctive style.