Cleveland Museum of Art

The Judgment of Solomon and Esther before Ahasuerus (pair)

Dirk Vellert

Date

c. 1530

Medium

pot metal, white glass, and silver stain

Culture

Netherlands, South Lowlands, 16th century

Department

Medieval Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Though also a painter and printmaker, Dierick (or Dirk) Vellert is best known as a designer of stained glass. Active in Antwerp, where he became a master of the Guild of Saint Luke in 1511, Vellert richly ornamented his work with garlands, masks, vases, and other classically inspired motifs. A great deal of his glass was exported. As an engraver, his prints owe a good deal to Albrecht Dürer and Luca van Leyden. These two panels depict famous incidents from the Old Testament featuring the rendering of judgment. Both may have originally been made for a council chamber or a court of justice. Conceivably, because of their subjects, they could have served as models of justice for the magistrates who deliberated within view of them.

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