Cleveland Museum of Art

Salome Receiving John the Baptist’s Head on a Platter (folio 112 verso), from a Mirror of Holiness (Mir’at al-quds) of Father Jerome Xavier

Date

1602–4

Medium

Gum tempera, ink, color, and gold on paper

Culture

Mughal India, Allahabad, made for Prince Salim (1569–1627)

Department

Indian and Southeast Asian Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Herod, King of Judea, sits on a Mughal-style throne as his wife’s daughter Salome reaches for the freshly severed head of John the Baptist. John had offended Herod’s wife, so she took revenge by having her daughter seduce Herod into granting her this wish. Salome is depicted modestly in this painting, and the court musician at the lower left looks on in disgust. The lion head capitals on the pillars above Herod are upside down, seemingly in disapproval of the debauched king. Column capitals in Herod’s palace have angels seated on upside-down lion heads.

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