Samson and Delilah

Unknown artist

c. 1626 - c. 1627

oil on panel

Rijksmuseum

A man with a quiver of arrows on his back stands to the left, gesturing towards a woman who is silencing a man resting his head on her lap. A pitcher and a goblet are on a platter to the right. This scene represents the biblical story of the Israelite Samson and the Philistine Delilah. Delilah seduced Samson into revealing the secret of his superhuman strength, namely his long hair. Without it he would be like any other mortal. This painting was recently reattributed to Rembrandt. Delilah gestures the approaching Philistine with a pair of scissors to be still.