Lambert Sustris, 'The Queen of Sheba before King Solomon', about 1540-55
About the work
Overview
Solomon was an Old Testament King of Israel known for his great wisdom. The Queen of Sheba came to Jerusalem from South Arabia to test Solomon’s wisdom for herself (1 Kings 10: 1–13). She was accompanied by a great retinue bearing spices, gold and precious stones.
She kneels in reverence before King Solomon who is seated on his throne beneath a red and gold canopy. Two ladies hold the Queen’s cloak while others present golden jars and bowls of spices brought as gifts from the east. The paint has become translucent over time, making it difficult to see what is happening in some parts of the picture, particularly among the Queen’s ladies.
The painting’s long narrow shape indicates that it was made to decorate a piece of furniture. It may have been one of a series of paintings for an organ case or a piece of bedroom furniture.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- The Queen of Sheba before King Solomon
- Artist
- Lambert Sustris
- Artist dates
- about 1515/20 - about 1570
- Date made
- about 1540-55
- Medium and support
- oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 80 × 187.3 cm
- Acquisition credit
- Layard Bequest, 1916
- Inventory number
- NG3107
- Location
- Not on display
- Collection
- Main Collection
- Previous owners
Provenance
Additional information
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Nicholas Penny, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: The Sixteenth Century Italian Paintings’, vol. 2, ‘Venice 1540–1600’, London 2008; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.
Exhibition history
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2014Building the Picture: Architecture in Italian Renaissance PaintingThe National Gallery (London)30 April 2014 - 21 September 2014
Bibliography
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1895G. Lafenestre and E. Richtenberger, Venise, Paris 1895
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1896G. Frizzoni, 'La Galerie Layard', Gazette des beaux-arts, II, 1896, pp. 455-76
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1902F. Kugler, The Italian Schools of Painting: Based on the Handbook of Kugler, ed. A.H. Layard, London 1902
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1912A. Venturi, 'La formazione della Galleria Layard a Venezia', L'arte, XV, 1912, pp. 449-62
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1957B. Berenson, Italian Pictures of the Renaissance: A List of the Principal Artists and Their Works, with an Index of Places: Venetian School, 2 vols, London 1957
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1959Gould, Cecil, National Gallery Catalogues: The Sixteenth Century Venetian School, London 1959
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1975C. Gould, Delaroche and Gautier: Gautier's Views on the 'Execution of Lady Jane Grey' and on other Compositions by Delaroche, London 1975
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1987Gould, Cecil, National Gallery Catalogues: The Sixteenth Century Italian Schools, London 1987
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1996R. Echols, 'Tintoretto, Christ at the Sea of Galilee and the Unknown Later Career of Lambert Sustris', Venezia cinquecento, VI/12, 1996, pp. 93-149
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1999H. Anderson, Collecting, Connoisseurship and the Art Market in Risorgimento Italy: Giovanni Morelli's Letters to Giovanni Melli and Pietro Zavaritt (1866-1872), Venice 1999
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2001
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
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2008Penny, Nicholas, National Gallery Catalogues: The Sixteenth Century Italian Paintings, 2, Venice, 1540-1600, London 2008
About this record
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.