The couple of round paintings (Judith and Holofernes) is a mature masterpiece by Agostino Beltrano, a Neapolitan artist active in the first half of the 17th Century. According to the studies they can be dated between the end of 1640 and the beginning of 1650.

The subjects, taken from the Old Testament, are quite frequent in Neapolitan paintings of that time. In the first, David is represented seated next to Goliath’s head. He is celebrated by Jewish girls who are walking towards him, by the rhythm of dance, with musical instruments in their hands. Another version of this subject by the same artist, (although in rectangular size) is now kept at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

It can be infered that Agostino Beltrano, like other contemporaries of his, knew the artworks by Massimo Stanzione. However, he added a moderate interest in a neo-Venetian and Rubensian way typical of Giovan Benedetto Castiglione and Pietro Novelli.