Judith and Holofernes
1645
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
Sheet (trimmed): 6 15/16 × 4 7/16 in. (17.7 × 11.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011
Accession Number
2012.136.155
Tags
Art Historical Context
Abraham Bosse's *Judith and Holofernes* (1645) is a striking engraving from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints collection, measuring a intimate 6 15/16 × 4 7/16 inches. This work captures the climactic biblical moment from the Book of Judith, the Jewish widow Judith beheads the Assyrian general Holofernes his own sword to save her besieged people—a tale of cunning heroism and divine justice popular in 17th-century European artAs a master French engraver active during the Baroque era, Bosse excelled in intaglio techniques, using a burin to incise fine, expressive lines into a ...
About the Artist
Abraham Bosse · 1602–1676
Abraham Bosse (1604–1676) was a French printmaker and theorist whose approximately 1,600 etchings provide an unparalleled visual record of 17th-century French life. Born to Huguenot parents in Tours, he trained in Paris under Melchior Tavernier and became a devoted follower of Jacques Callot's technical innovations. Bosse's meticulous etchings depicted subjects ranging from daily life and fashion ...