Lot 156: Artus Wolffort (Antwerp 1581 - 1642)

“Esther in Ahasuerus' house of the women”, oil on panel, 57 x 81 cm, brandmark of the town of Antwerp and panelmaker's clover stamp to the reverse, framed, (Wo)

Several autograph replicas of this composition are known: in the Gemäldegalerie in Kassel, in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and in the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.
Looking for a wife, the Persian King Ahasuerus sent for young girls to be brought to his palace. After they had been attended to and dressed by eunuchs in the house of the women, they were brought before the King. Esther enters the scene on the left, led by the eunuch Efeus. As she is the most beautiful one, it is her the King will chose. As an allusion to his choice, the picture at the upper margin shows the Judgement of Paris. The young Jewess Esther, Ahasuerus' future wife, later was to play a decisive role in saving her people through her bravery. Over the centuries this story from the Old Testament has been dealt with in numerous paintings unter the title Esther and Ahasuerus (Book of Esther).