The Head of John the Baptist (Solari)

The Head of John the Baptist is a 1507 oil on poplar board painting by Andrea Solari, probably commissioned by cardinal Georges d'Amboise.

Details

Signed and dated at bottom right, the image depicts the severed head of John the Baptist on a charger plate in which is a reflection, probably of Solari himself.^[1]

The frame bears a seemingly original Latin inscription evoking John the Baptist. It is now in the Louvre in Paris, to which it was given by Eugène Lecomte in 1868. From 4 December 2012 to 11 March 2013 it was part of the temporary exhibition "Renaissance" at Louvre-Lens under catalogue number 25.^[2]