Obj. ID: 27528
Modern Jewish Art Raban, Ashmedai's Meeting with King Solomon, illustration for Ch. N. Bialik's King Solomon and Ashmedai
The picture represents a large winged figure of Ashmedai. His lower body is hen-like and his upper body is naked. He has black wings, which fill most of the picture. His right arm and leg are chained and he is holding a stick in his left hand. He has a green-orange turban and a little beard and he is wearing a belt around his waist. The figure is standing on the black and white floor of a building fronting King Solomon. Solomon is seen from his back sitting on a blue arm-chair. He wears a white robe with blue stripes. To his right on the floor are a few dishes. From the roof the city's houses can be seen. In the background the colours are green and yellow.
This text was prepared by Alec Mishory:
Hebrew poet laureate Ch. N. Bialik collected, arranged, and retold many Jewish folk tales in the modern period. One of them - King Solomon and Ashmedai - tells how the King caught Ashmedai, king of demons and brought him to his court in chains. Solomon was in the process of building the Temple in Jerusalem; he was advised that there is a magical worm – shamir. He then forces the demon to actually help him build the Temple by relinquishing the services of the shamir, a mystical worm who could split rocks easily without iron tools. Raban's illustration focuses on Ashmedai's meeting with Solomon. The demon, in chains, holds a staff, four cubits long, about to throw it on the ground, next to the king's feet.