Lot 1228 Dα

When Salome danced at the banquet of King Herod, she demanded the head of John the Baptist as a reward (Matt. 13:9-12; Mark 6:24-28). Jacob de Backer depicts the executioner placing the saint's head into the dish that Salome holds. He looks at her intently, but she turns away from the gruesome scene.
The elegant figure of Salome, the vigorous gesture of the executioner and the work's palette all illustrate the painter's extensive knowledge of late 16th century Florentine art. De Backer came into contact with teh art of Giorgio Vasari, Alessandro Allori and Francesco Salviati during a sojourn to Florence which he made following his training in Antwerp in the 1560s. It is not known whether he carried out commissions for Vasari, but the works which he created upon his return to Antwerp show that he had fully internalised the style of courtly Florentine Mannerism.
In Antwerp, de Backer received numerous religious commissions, but he also painted representative mythological works to decorate the homes of Flemish burghers. Although the present panel illustrates a biblical theme, it was doubtlessly also meant for the collection of a burgher. These educated patrons were charmed by the artist's elegant 'maniera'. Like Frans Floris and Otto van Veen, Jacob de Backer was among those Flemings whose reception of Italian painting influenced art in Flanders well into the early 17th century.