Artemisia Gentileschi's 'Susanna and the Elders' Rediscovered in Royal Collection, Now on Display at Holyroodhouse

Artemisia Gentileschi's painting 'Susanna and the Elders' has been rediscovered within the British Royal Collection and is now on display at Holyroodhouse Palace in Edinburgh. The artwork, likely commissioned during Gentileschi's time working with her father, Orazio Gentileschi, at the court of Charles I and Henrietta Maria in the late 1630s, had been misattributed and stored at Hampton Court Palace for over a century. Art historian Niko Munz played a key role in its rediscovery, tracing works sold after Charles I's execution. The painting's restoration revealed a 'CR' mark, confirming its provenance. Emma Stead, curator at Holyroodhouse, highlights Gentileschi's significance as a leading Italian Baroque artist, celebrated for her unique portrayal of female vulnerability, contrasting with the eroticized depictions common among male artists of the time. The painting, depicting the biblical story of Susanna, is displayed alongside Gentileschi's 'Self-Portrait as an Allegory of Painting.'