Plaque with Solomon Turning to Idolatry

Description In later life, Solomon, the Old Testament king famous for his wisdom, fell under the influence of his 700 foreign wives and turned to idolatry, building temples for their gods (1 Kings). This plaque and its companion "Jael Killing Sisera" are from a series "The Power of Women," based on engravings of around 1569, published in Antwerp by Philips Galle (1537-1612). Other subjects include Eve offering the Apple to Adam, Delilah Cutting Sampson's Hair, and Judith Killing Holofernes. The women are represented as using their sexuality to control men. The series mixes the heroic and the tawdry, making little concession to the exemplary bravery and achievements of Judith or Jahel. An example of social "backlash," the series was popular only where middle-class women had gained greater access to education and legal rights. Pierre Reymond, who monogrammed the plaques, is known for sophisticated painted enamel display tableware.

Conservation

Date	Description	Narrative
4/22/1965	Treatment	loss compensation
6/19/2001	Loan Consideration	examined for loan
1/04/2002	Treatment	cleaned; examined for loan

Exhibitions

• Women Who Ruled: Queens, Goddesses, Amazons 1500-1650. The University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor; The Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis; Davis Museum and Cultural Center, Wellesley College, Wellesley. 2002.

Provenance Duke of Cambacérès Collection [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henri Daguerre, Paris [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1928, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Credit Acquired by Henry Walters, 1928