David Holding the Head of Goliath, Rome around 1615-1630

Relined canvas, 96 cm x 71 cm.
Antique frame, 109 cm x 85 cm.

This work depicts David holding the head of Goliath, a biblical subject particularly popular in Caravaggesque Rome during the first third of the 17th century. The young hero is shown in half-length against a dark background, dressed in contemporary clothing enhanced with a decorative feather, while the head of the vanquished giant is relegated to shadow, according to an iconography then widely circulated in Caravaggesque circles.
The painting is distinguished by its rich impasto, with visible impasto, notably in the treatment of the feather and the highlights. The marked chiaroscuro, the sobriety of the background, and the slightly worldly elegance of the sitter testify to an assimilation of the Caravaggesque style, tempered by a more pronounced decorative taste.
These characteristics suggest an attribution to a Nordic workshop active in Rome, rather than to a strictly Italian painter. The young, elegant, almost androgynous model, as well as the attention paid to accessories and costume, bring the work closer to the production of Romanized Nordic painters, such as Nicolas Régnier.