Judith and Holofernes, 1493, Michael Wolgemut, German, 1434/37 - 1519, 7 3/16 x 14 1/8 in. (18.26 x 35.88 cm) (image), Woodcut, Germany, 15th century, Early on, Judith was a hero, the resourceful widow who saved her people by decapitating the Assyrian general Holofernes. In the 12th-century Speculum Virginum she symbolized the triumph of humility over pride; in other handbooks she prefigured the Virgin Mary. Yet in the late 15th century, Judith became a femme fatale.
Judith and Holofernes, 1493, Michael Wolgemut, German, 1434/37 - 1519, 7 3/16 x 14 1/8 in. (18.26 x 35.88 cm) (image), Woodcut, Germany, 15th century, Early on, Judith was a hero, the resourceful widow who saved her people by decapitating the Assyrian general Holofernes. In the 12th-century Speculum Virginum she symbolized the triumph of humility over pride; in other handbooks she prefigured the Virgin Mary. Yet in the late 15th century, Judith became a femme fatale.