The Judgment of Solomon
by GIORGIONE, Oil on wood, 89 x 72 cm
Giorgione depicted the celebrated story of Solomon’s wisdom in one of two pendant paintings. The great king has declared that the living child be - literary - divided between the women claiming him. The babe’s mother will cede the child, rather than see him die.
An elusive figure, Giorgione made odd works: here the landscape occupies more than half the panel.