“Susanna in the Bath”
“Susanna in the Bath” is an oil on wood painting made in 1526 by the German Northern Renaissance artist, Albrecht Altdorfer. Altdorfer was a landscape painter at heart, and when he painted biblical scenes such as this one here, he used it as a platform to showcase the landscape. In this painting, an immense building dominates the right side of the painting, with exquisite architectural details. The peaks of the Alps of Germany and Austria rise in the background on the left.
In this painting, Altdorfer depicts a scene from the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament from the Catholic and Orthodox traditions regarding Susanna and the two judges. This was a popular subject in art and has been painted many times by artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt van Rijn, and Pablo Picasso.
In this story, Susanna, the chaste wife of Joakim, was advanced upon by two elderly judges as she was taking a bath. Upon seeing them, Susanna cried out. The judges threatened that they would accuse her of infidelity unless she had sex with them, but Susanna refused. The two judges accused Susanna of adultery and said they saw her with a young man under a tree. Susanna was arrested and sentenced to death.
However, Daniel, who was a young boy at this time, stepped in and asked the judges separately to show him which tree Susanna was found under. The judges pointed out different trees. Their lie was made public, and Susanna’s life was spared. The two judges were stoned to death.
The two judges can be seen in the lower left lying under a tree watching Susanna bathe. On the right, the two same judges can be seen on the ground surrounded by a crowd as their execution of stoning is being carried out.
“Susanna in the Bath” is currently on display at the Alte Pinakothek, of the Pinakotheken museums and the Bavarian State Painting Collections in Munich, Germany.
For more on Albrecht Altdorfer, please visit his short biography here.
You can find more artists to learn about here.
