Painting by Lorenzo Lotto
| Susanna and the Elders | |
|---|---|
| Artist | Lorenzo Lotto |
| Year | |
| Medium | Oil on panel |
| Dimensions | 66&#;cm ×&#;51&#;cm (26&#;in ×&#;20&#;in) |
| Location | Uffizi Gallery, Florence |
Susanna and the Elders is an oil-on-panel painting by the ItalianRenaissance painter Lorenzo Lotto, dating from It is housed in the Uffizi Gallery of Florence.[1]
The work has the signature LOTUS PICTOR . The date places it during Lotto's sojourn in Bergamo, executed perhaps as a private commission. It is likely that it formed a cover for a portrait.
The painting is known in catalogues only from the 20th century, when it was part of the Benson collection [London], which was sold in by Benson's heirs to Duveen Brothers. At some point the painting was acquired by Alessandro Contini-Bonacossi, for million liras.[2] It was later transferred from his collection to the Uffizi, which now exhibits the painting in the room for Lombard painters.
Main article: Susanna and the Elders in art
The painting depicts the story of Susanna from the Old Testament. She was the wife of one Joachim, and received the advances of her husband's friends while taking a bath. After her refusal, the "Elders" accused her of adultery, but the accusation was later proved to be false thanks to the intervention of Daniel.
Lotto portrayed her after removing her clothing for the bath, while the Elders burst in from the door of the bath's enclosure, followed by two serfs called to support their accusation of adultery. The cartouches, showing the characters' dialogue, are an archaic element, perhaps required by the commissioner himself as a complement of the moral message.
The upper part of the picture is occupied by a view of the garden and a castle within an idyllic landscape. A preliminary scene of the episode is shown there, with the woman entering the garden while her two maidens return.