Flamenco Master; second third of the 17th century.
"Esther before Ahasuerus".
Oil on panel. Engatillada.
It has an 18th century frame.
Measurements: 50 x 79 cm; 66,5 x 95 cm (frame).
This scene is really characteristic, since normally the scene of Esther and Ahasuerus is represented in profile, showing the concrete moment in which Esther faints. In this work, however, the artist has captured the banquet in which all the characters are gathered around a table, a fact that allows the artist to recreate a multitude of details and to demonstrate his carefully outlined technical quality, a characteristic that was common in the Flemish school. The image is conceived through an open foreground treated in perspective, thus creating an image of great depth and following Italian models, an influence that is also evident in the architectural treatment of the space, where the floor and the Solomonic columns stand out. However, the figures retain the dimensions and pictorial treatment typical of the Flemish school, where the depiction of banquets was also very common.
The scene in the painting depicts a narrative from the Book of Esther, which is part of the Old Testament. The painting depicts Esther, the Jewish wife of King Ahasuerus, sometimes referred to as Xerxes in modern texts. After the king ordered the execution of all the Jewish people in the Persian Empire, Esther went to him, without being summoned, to beg him to spare her people. This broke court etiquette and Esther risked death in doing so. She ended up fainting before the king, which resulted in a change in the king's decision, allowing the Jews to defend themselves against her attack, preventing them from being killed.