Judith with the Head of Holofernes

Florentine artist Cristofano Allori's most famous painting, created between 1610 and 1612, became an immediate success and was widely copied, thanks in part to the popularity of the legend of the biblical heroine Judith, which the artist interpreted autobiographically; Holofernes' decapitated head is a self-portrait while his beloved Mazzafirra is depicted in the beautiful face of the young woman, whose…

Florentine artist Cristofano Allori's most famous painting, created between 1610 and 1612, became an immediate success and was widely copied, thanks in part to the popularity of the legend of the biblical heroine Judith, which the artist interpreted autobiographically; Holofernes' decapitated head is a self-portrait while his beloved Mazzafirra is depicted in the beautiful face of the young woman, whose extraordinarily luxurious clothing is a direct tribute to the city's thriving textile industry. This is one of many prints that were made after the painting, which is in the Gallerie degli Uffizi in Florence.