Gallery label
At more than four metres high, the private handoff becomes an enveloping public spectacle woven in wool and silk.
Look closely
Pattern, costume, foliage, architecture, and narrative compete across the surface. The severed head is not isolated against darkness; it is absorbed into a dense courtly world that rewards slow scanning.
Why this Judith matters
Tapestry changes the conditions of viewing. Judith could surround a room, travel with an elite household, and turn biblical victory into portable magnificence.
Sources for this record:The Metropolitan Museum of Art record ↗
“At more than four metres high, the private handoff becomes an enveloping public spectacle woven in wool and silk.”
Narrative index
Primary catalogue placement: the head in the bag, Judith 13:8–10. The index organizes comparison; it does not claim that every visual detail comes from those verses or that the work touches only one episode.
