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Scenes from the Book of Esther

c. 1545-1560
Artist/maker unknown , German, active southern Germany
In this work, figures wearing mid-sixteenth century German courtly costume enact several episodes from the Old Testament story of Esther within a stagelike setting of Renaissance architecture. As queen of Persia, Esther persuaded King Ahasuerus to thwart Haman's plot to destroy the Jewish people. Renaissance patrons of art appreciated Old Testament heroines as exemplars of virtue.

Object Details

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