Solomon and the Queen of Sheba: Historical and Theological Issues in the First Book of Kings and in the Paintings of Piero della Francesca

Abstract

The first book of Kings succinctly evokes—in only thirteen verses—the mysterious figure of a queen who came from the distant land of Sheba to test Solomon’s wisdom (1 Kgs 10.1–13). Who would have predicted that this modest episode celebrating the glory of the ancient kings of Jerusalem would be so popular? The episode has spread far beyond the boundaries of the two Testaments, notably in painting. Piero della Francesca’s fresco cycle in Arezzo is a fine example in this respect. Inspired by the Golden Legend, the Florentine painter recreates the scenes of the discovery of the true Cross. Solomon and the Queen of Sheba meet against the backdrop of the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Whether intra- or extra-biblical, ancient or modern, rereading of the original episode reveals issues that are as much historical as they are theological.

1. Introduction

The episode described in 1 Kgs 10.1–13 may seem ‘anecdotal’ at first sight: a rich and powerful queen travels some 3000 kilometers across the desert from Sheba to Jerusalem, with the sole aim of testing King Solomon with riddles. Amazed by the wisdom and wealth of the king of Israel, she offers him spices, precious stones, and one hundred and twenty kikkar of gold—the equivalent of about four tons of gold—which she had transported on camels. Solomon is not to be outdone, as he in turn gives her more than she brought. The meeting ends after this exchange of sumptuous gifts and is immediately followed by the Queen’s departure to return home. This mysterious woman goes back to where she came from without having emerged from her anonymity.

The episode seems to be part of a fairy tale, in which the marvelous allows for all sorts of imaginary possibilities, as evidenced by post-biblical readings. Whether through Jewish or Koranic literature, the dynastic narrative of Ethiopia in the 10th century AD or the pious legends of the Christian Middle Ages, it can be said that the Queen of Sheba has become ‘a literary myth’ (Hetzel 2012, p. 17; Chastel 2000). This myth inspired many artists, particularly from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, before rekindling the flame of explorers such as Thomas-Joseph Arnaud in 1843 and André Malraux in 1934, who travelled to Yemen, the land of the ancient kingdom of Sheba. And how could we not mention the peplums about Solomon and the Queen of Sheba—in 1913, 1921, 1952, and 1958—presenting the story from a distinctly romantic angle? Or Flaubert’s temptation of Saint Anthony, embodied by the Queen of Sheba, trying to awaken desire in the heart and body of the hermit?

The literary and artistic legacy of the episode may seem out of proportion to the sobriety of the first version of the story in the first book of Kings. However, the primitive account does not contradict the profusion of traditions and interpretations that have followed, since it is precisely its brevity—only thirteen verses—that is the cause. In fact, the narrative is sufficiently elaborate to give rise to a plot, and it is sufficiently concise to create ‘gaps’ that can be filled in many ways. As a result, the mysterious story has never ceased to live, being transmitted in various forms and expanding over the centuries, widening the gaps of its original version.

It is precisely this supposed distance between the initial narrative and one of its reinterpretations that this contribution wishes to highlight. Reception of the Queen of Sheba episode is extremely wide-ranging. We will confine ourselves to exploring this aspect through the work of one of the major artists of the Renaissance, Piero della Francesca. In the first part (I), we will attempt to give an account of the historical and theological issues underlying the biblical episode (1 Kgs 10.1–13). In the second part (II), we will consider the same episode through Piero della Francesca, whose frescoes in Arezzo offer a stimulating synthesis between the biblical source and Jacques de Voragine’s Golden Legend, raising new historical and theological issues. This study will highlight demarcations between the initial episode and its reception, revealing the polysemy of a narrative while being updated in a new historical and theological context.

2. The Episode of the Queen of Sheba in the First Book of Kings (1 Kgs 10.1–13)

2.1. A First Look at the Episode of 1 Kgs 10.1–13

According to biblical chronology, Solomon lived in the 10th century BC. But the writing of this episode should not be dated to this period. Even though the story of the Queen of Sheba’s arrival in Jerusalem may have pre-existed in a popular collection about Solomon, it was not inserted into the first book of Kings until the beginning of the Persian period, i.e., between 538 and 450 BC, and it probably reached its final form even later, towards the end of the Persian period, between 450 and 350 BC (Pastore 2025, pp. 309–23). There may be various reasons why the episode was then included in the macro-narrative on Solomon. The following analysis will attempt to explain them.

A first glance at the whole cycle on Solomon in 1 Kgs 3–11 reveals that the pericope of the Queen of Sheba in 1 Kgs 10.1–13 constitutes a kind of very complete summary of the data concerning Solomon which is deployed throughout these chapters. More precisely, we can say that the pericope of 10.1–13 constitutes a ‘mise en abyme’ of the macro-narrative on Solomon. As the ‘mise en abyme’ is a figure of speech referring to the representation of a work within a work of the same type, the visit of the Queen of Sheba constitutes a representation of the entire Solomonic reign within this macro-narrative itself. The same aspects are evoked, in particular Solomon’s incomparable reputation for wisdom, the wealth of the kingdom, the mention of Solomon’s high officials, the building of the Temple and the palace, the royal activity of passing judgement, the fact that the Name of YHWH is the reason why foreigners come to Jerusalem, the commercial transactions with King Hiram, and finally Solomon’s wives.

The process of ‘mise en abyme’ in 1 Kgs 3–11 allows us to verify everything that has been said about Solomon up to that point. In fact, according to 1 Kgs 10.1, the Queen comes to put Solomon to the test. The verification is carried out by a foreign queen who acts as an arbiter and witness to the glory of Solomon’s kingdom. The ‘mise en abyme’ thus breaks the boundaries of the macro-narrative: through the micro-narrative of the Queen of Sheba, a window is opened so that the glory of Israel can be admired, recognized, and confirmed by those on the outside.

The purpose of the story is therefore to glorify Solomon and, through him, the kingship of Israel, or at least a certain idealized kingship. Although the Queen of Sheba is the protagonist of the scene, she only emerges from the shadows for the duration of the story; her name is not even mentioned. She is simply the agent through whom Solomon’s greatness is proclaimed.

2.2. A Queen Coming from Sheba

To continue our investigation, let us look at the Queen’s origins: why ‘Sheba’? Where is this kingdom located and what characterizes it? The biblical data on the location of Sheba is very approximate and suggests two possibilities: Sheba could be located either to the north-west or south-west of the Arabian Peninsula1, or on the other side of the Red Sea, in Africa. Indeed, as early as the 15th century BC, the Egyptians referred to the entire region on either side of the Bab al-Mandab strait, with the coasts of Yemen and opposite those of Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia, as the ‘land of Punt’. Although we do not know exactly how, the two shores of the Red Sea around the Bab al-Mandab strait were already involved in significant trade from at least the second half of the second millennium BC on.

We should also remember that, for the Greeks, the African coast and the eastern coast of the Red Sea were encompassed by the wide region known as Aἰθιοπία. Many authors were transfixed by the immense camel caravans carrying their treasures and gave descriptions of them that were exuberant, at least as early as the 5th century BC. This would lead to the later designation of Arabia felix2 for this extended territory.

Even in Roman times, the region of Sheba was known as an extremely rich kingdom. The Queen who went to Jerusalem to assess the glory of Solomon’s kingdom was therefore equal to the task. She was the perfect female counterpart to King Solomon.

What is more, since Sheba is reputed to be remote and inaccessible—a natural barrier of 3000 km of desert separates it from Jerusalem—the fact that its queen travels to meet Solomon indicates that Solomon’s glory is such that it has reached the ends of the earth. The idea that Solomon’s wisdom was practically universally renowned paves the way for what will be stated much more explicitly in other later texts, namely that Jerusalem is in some way the center of the world towards which all the kings of the earth (will) converge (1 Kgs 5.14; 8.41), including other kings of Sheba (Ps 72.10–11; Is 60.3–7) (de Pury 2003, p. 234).

2.3. King Solomon’s Wisdom Tested by Riddles

It would, however, be a mistake to rely on this idyllic description. The story of the Queen of Sheba’s arrival in Jerusalem is anything but naive. Indeed, the Queen’s final homage in the form of her sumptuous gift (1 Kgs 10.10) was only given after a severe trial, the details of which suggest that it may have been harsh and lengthy, even if Solomon emerged victorious.

According to v.1, the Queen came to test Solomon ‘with riddles’ (בְּחִידֽוֹת). The action of ‘trying’, ‘testing’ or ‘measuring’ (לנסתו - 1 Kgs 10.1) indicates that the Queen intends to verify what she has heard about Solomon. In this, she sets herself apart from the other kings who come only to admire Solomon’s wisdom (1 Kgs 5.14; 10.24). One of the questions that arises is why the test is carried out by means of riddles. What is the purpose of this practice?

The confrontation between the Queen of Sheba and Solomon takes place in a courtly context. The story undoubtedly refers to the practice—attested in the Ancient East—of riddle competitions between sovereigns. This type of contest could be the occasion for real demonstrations of power. It has even been suggested that armed combat may have been replaced by such tournaments of wisdom. In this sense, it should be noted that the Queen of Sheba appears at Solomon’s court with ‘a very imposing army’ (בחיל כבד מאד - 1 Kgs 10.2). Obviously, no fighting took place. Solomon resolved all the questions put to him by the Queen (1 Kgs 10.3). What might have appeared as tension in verses 1 and 2 disappears in the following part of the story. In verse 13, the Queen and all her retinue return home peacefully.

What do we know about the riddles proposed by the Queen of Sheba to Solomon? To be honest, very little can be said, since their content is not developed. However, we can imagine that the content of the riddles is close to another episode mentioned earlier in the Solomon cycle. Solomon must solve a real living riddle when two women appear before him with two children, one living, one dead, each claiming to be the mother of the living one (1 Kgs 3.16–28). Although there are no clues or outside witnesses to help Solomon, he is able—against all expectations—to solve the problem. Solomon asks for a sword and is about to cut the living child in two and give one half to each woman, provoking the reaction of the real mother: she gives up ‘her half’ so that no harm comes to the child. The riddle is solved, and King Solomon’s wisdom is revealed to all Israel.

Through the riddles the Queen of Sheba presents to him, she is positioned as the arbiter able to assess Solomon’s wisdom. We can assume that she is implicitly considered to be a wise queen, but it is not stated. It should be noted that only Solomon is explicitly considered as such.

2.4. Wisdom and Wealth as Divine Gifts

Solomon’s wisdom can be seen not only in his ability to solve every kind of riddle (1 Kgs 10.1) or ‘hidden word’ (דָּבָר נֶעְלָם - 1 Kgs 10.3) that the Queen has put to him, but also in his material and human possessions. For in Israel, as in ancient civilizations, wisdom has a consistency and ‘can be seen’. It implies knowledge of the mechanisms and laws that regulate the world (plant, animal, human; see 1 Kgs 5.13–14). As a result, wisdom is the art of governing the world and governing oneself. It is therefore a practical matter, since it enables us to live in the world and make the most of it.

Basically, to be wise is to succeed, and this must be shown and seen. The pericope of the Queen of Sheba explicitly evokes the vision in 1 Kgs 10.4 (‘And the Queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon’). In a concentric arrangement in verses 4 and 5, the Queen sees the two houses built by Solomon (his palace, as well as the Temple); the food offered at the king’s table, as well as the burnt offerings offered in the Temple; Solomon’s servants, ministers and cupbearers; and finally, their clothes. The references to the two ‘houses’, the Temple and the palace, point to the impressive building work undertaken by Solomon, who was acknowledged as the king builder (1 Kgs 5.15—8.66). The Queen is breathless, even though she is the Queen of the prestigious kingdom of Sheba; that is how great the Solomonic kingdom was! In the last verse of the pericope, the Queen receives from Solomon everything she had asked for (1 Kgs 10.13). Solomon’s gift is therefore total. The Queen of Sheba is overwhelmed.

Wealth and wisdom are therefore presented as the qualities expected of a king who deserves to be called such. Wealth can also be interpreted as a manifestation of wisdom. What is more, in Solomon’s case, wealth and wisdom were a direct gift from YHWH. In a famous dream, Solomon had asked YHWH for ‘a listening heart to govern the people and to discern between good and evil’ (1 Kgs 3.9), which was immediately granted (1 Kgs 3.12). Then, in the next verse, he was promised incomparable riches by YHWH as a reward for having asked for wisdom: ‘And even what you did not ask for, I will give you: riches and glory, so that all your life there will be no one like you among the kings’ (1 Kgs 3.13). So, in Israel, wisdom and wealth have their source in YHWH and are ordered to the proper government of the people of Israel.

Such a link between the religious and the political can be seen twice in the pericope of the Queen of Sheba—in 1 Kgs 10.4–5 and in 1 Kgs 10.12—through the inseparability of the Temple and the palace, i.e., the two ‘houses’ built by Solomon. Verse 4b refers to the building of the palace and verse 5b to the sacrifices at the Temple. In verse 12a, reference is made to the furniture (a support), as well as the musical instruments (harps and lyres), made by Solomon for the service of the Temple of YHWH and the palace. The internal organization of the kingdom—and, above all, its prosperity—were therefore based on these two buildings or on the institutions they represented, which were closely linked. In the Ancient East, there was no separation between religion and the state: power or kingship was guaranteed by the divinity. Solomon’s success is the result of a perfect alignment between the authority of YHWH and the loyalty of its human representative, demonstrating that true wisdom is a divine gift.

2.5. The Judicial Dimension of Solomon’s Wisdom

Wisdom translated into the ability to govern is precisely what forms the climax of the story in 1 Kgs 10.8–9. Verse 8 says ‘blessed are your wives3, blessed are your servants, those who stand before your face continually, those who listen to your wisdom!’ (Pastore 2025, pp. 126–29) This macarism does not only proclaim lucky the women who live in Solomon’s harem and share his bed, as well as the privileged servants of a good king. This verse rather describes the quality of the government exercised by Solomon. Indeed, the way in which these women and servants ‘stand’ (עמד) literally ‘in the face’ (פנה) of Solomon refers to two registers: one hierarchical—the expression is used to emphasize a relationship between superior and inferior4—and the other judicial—the expression is used for the appearance in civil judgment.5 Now, the act of judging is the specificity of the royal function. It was common for the people to come and listen to the king deliver his judgements, or for the people to consult the king on an important issue or one that no one else had been able to resolve. This refers again to the episode told in 1 Kgs 3.16–28 where the two prostitutes also ‘stand’ before Solomon, who fulfils his role as king-judge. He dispenses justice among the people. At the end of the king’s verdict, the root ‘judgment’ (שפט) is used three times in the same concluding verse (1 Kgs 3.28).

This judicial activity is, moreover, recognized as a manifestation of his wisdom. It should also be noted that the expression ‘to see/observe’ (ראה) wisdom appears in the whole Bible only in 1 Kgs 3.28 and 10.4. The use of the same expression in both texts suggests that we are dealing with the same type of wisdom: wisdom understood as the ability to lead the people according to the law. Moreover, in both pericopes, this judicial wisdom is of ‘divine’ origin. This is explicit in 1 Kgs 3.28: ‘they saw the divine wisdom that was in him’ (כִּי חָכְמַת אֱלֹהִים בְּקִרְבּוֹ). And this is implicit in 1 Kgs 10.1, where it is stated that the Queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame ‘in the name of YHWH’ (לְשֵׁם יְהוָה).6

The judicial dimension of wisdom is corroborated in the next verse, where the Queen pronounces a blessing concerning YHWH: ‘Blessed be YHWH your elohim who desired you to give you the throne of Israel! YHWH loves Israel and will maintain it forever; and he has made you king to do justice and righteousness’ (1 Kgs 10.9). Divine benevolence towards Israel is expressed through the choice of Solomon (according to YHWH’s desire—חפץ), to make him king. There is a clear will to legitimize Solomon as King of Israel. It should be emphasized that it is the foreign Queen who recognizes YHWH as the origin of Solomon’s kingship, and therefore Israel as an important nation (cf. 1 Sam. 8.5). Moreover, in verse 9, the entire royal function is summed up in the binomial ‘righteousness and justice’ (משפט וצדקה), which does not appear elsewhere in the macro-narrative on Solomon (1 Kgs 1–11). It is a classic attribute of the royal function in the Ancient Near East. In the person of the king, the function of representing divinity or mediating between the divine and human spheres was expressed through the exercise of righteousness and justice (cf. Niehr 1997, pp. 112–30). It is therefore Solomon’s ability to govern in accordance with divine standards that is emphasized. The main function of the Queen of Sheba in 1 Kgs 3–11—as representative of foreign peoples—is to attest that Solomon is the guardian of unequalled divine wisdom. But what is the point of praising Solomon in the context of the Persian era, when Israel no longer had a king?

2.6. Solomon’s Kingship or YHWH’s Kingship?

We have seen that the judicial side of Solomon’s wisdom is also present in the pericope of the two prostitutes. Remember that, in 1 Kgs 3.9, Solomon had asked for a heart that would listen precisely to be able ‘to judge/govern’ (שפט) the people. Therefore, the episodes of 1 Kgs 3.16–28 and 1 Kgs 10.1–13 are, in a way, a variation on the theme of judicial wisdom offered to Solomon in the dream at Gibeon. The intertextual connections between these two pericopes are significant, as they show a framework around the construction of the Temple, each appearing within a sequence dealing with the king’s wisdom and political success (1 Kgs 3.16–5.14 and 1 Kgs 9.26–10.29).7 These two sequences frame the story of the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem, of which Solomon was the prestigious builder:

• A—3.1–15 Daughter of Pharaoh and first speech of YHWH
• B—3.16–5.14 Wisdom and internal politics (judgement between the two prostitutes)
• C—5.15–32 Preparations for the building of the Temple (transactions with Hiram and first labor)
• X—6.1–38 Beginning of the construction of the Temple and second speech of YHWH and 7.13–9.9 Completion of the building of the Temple and third speech of YHWH
• C’—9.10–25 After the building of the Temple (transactions with Hiram and second labor)
• B’—9.26–10.29 Wisdom and foreign policy (visit of the Queen of Sheba)
• A’—11.1–13 Daughter of Pharaoh and fourth speech of YHWH

The macro-narrative is structured concentrically. Two divine speeches provide the framework for the whole macro-narrative (A and A’). The kingdom’s internal and external policies are then examined through the prism of wisdom (B and B’). The exchanges between Solomon and Hiram are then discussed, as are the two labors imposed by Solomon (C and C’). In the center (X), Solomon’s most prestigious construction, the Temple, is described.

These central chapters contain a long prayer uttered by Solomon in 1 Kgs 8.30–61, in which we find in particular the expression ‘apply/observe the law’ (verb עָשָׂה or שׁמר + noun מִשְׁפָּט), which appears identically in the two wisdom pericopes, that of the judgment between the two prostitutes (1 Kgs 3.28) and that of the visit of the Queen of Sheba (1 Kgs 10.9). What is new in Solomon’s prayer is that the same judicial vocabulary describes the divine action and not that of the king. Five times in 8.30–61, YHWH is described as the supreme Judge of Israel.8 By using the same vocabulary of law and justice, the prayer of 8.30–61 makes a significant shift by stating that YHWH is the only and true king of Israel. It is no longer a question of King Solomon, but of YHWH performing the royal and judicial function in Israel.

In the context of the end of the Persian era, reading the episode in 1 Kgs 10.1–13 in the light of the entire macro-narrative on Solomon (1 Kgs 3–11) shows that the objective in not so much to praise the ancient and prestigious kings of Israel—such as Solomon—as to remind the people of Israel scattered far from Jerusalem that YHWH is their true Ruler. The aim is to give the exiled communities the assurance that YHWH is still their god and their sovereign. In other words, the cycle on Solomon in its final form seeks to affirm and preserve the identity of Israel in a situation of diaspora.

3. Interpretation of the Encounter of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba in the Paintings of Piero della Francesca

3.1. The Biblical Narrative Completed by the Tradition of the Holy Cross

The memory of the encounter with the Queen of Sheba has been handed down from generation to generation since antiquity, enriched by flourishing legends that remained independent of the exegesis of the first book of Kings.9 Yet her depiction enjoyed renewed interest during the Middle Ages and the early Renaissance. Even today, its renown owes a great deal to the reinterpretation given to it by the humanist painter and mathematician Piero della Francesca (Borgo San Sepolcro, c. 1412–1492). In the cycle of frescoes he painted in the Basilica of San Francesco in Arezzo, Tuscany (Figure 1), the story of the biblical encounter between the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon is intertwined with another tradition, that of the story of the True Cross. But how did this connection come about?

As we have seen in the biblical narrative, even if a certain mystery surrounds their meeting and their conversation, the Queen of Sheba finally gathers Solomon’s wisdom. As a foreign queen, she acts as an arbiter to the glory of Solomon’s kingdom. While glorifying the kingship of Israel, Piero della Francesca made the Queen of Sheba the new protagonist of this encounter, allowing her to emerge from the shadows. In fact, her wisdom is most clearly manifested in the contribution she makes to the denouement of the story of the Holy Cross.

Over time, it seemed indeed natural that the wood used to build the Cross was predestined by divine will for its sacred mission in the history of the salvation. That is why it seemed unlikely that no trace would have survived of it. From the 4th century on, legends of the Wood of the Cross, which must have originated in Syria, spread to the West (Straubinger 1912; Chastel 1949, p. 108). But it was, above all, the account handed down to us by Jacques de Voragine’s Golden Legend (Cf. Boureau 1984; Le Goff 2011; de Voragine 1910, pp. 259–66) in the 13th century that became the main source for the depiction of this story during the Renaissance, incorporating the biblical episode of the meeting between the Queen of Sheba and Solomon. It was on this event that the representations by the painters Agnolo Gaddi (Chastel 1949, pp. 99–114) in Florence (1388–1393), Cenni di Francesco in Volterra (c. 1410), and Piero della Francesca in Arezzo (c. 1452–1466) were based, the latter helping to establish the depiction of this encounter in Western art.

3.2. The Queen of Sheba and the Golden Legend

Less known nowadays than it was in the Middle Ages, the Golden Legend was a huge success from the time it was first written in Latin by the Dominican Jacques de Voragine (Varazze, c. 1228—Genoa, 1298), Archbishop of Genoa. This collection of hagiographies was a hit until the 17th century and was rapidly translated into various vernacular languages from the Middle Ages onwards. More than a thousand medieval manuscripts have thus survived to this day, making it the second most important medieval text after the Bible. From the second half of the 15th century, with the invention of printing, it was also one of the first to be published, with no fewer than 49 editions between 1470 and 1500 (Le Goff 2011). Its success owed a great deal to the development of silent, individual reading, which spread at this time, drawing on liturgical texts such as this one, which presented a selection and succession of saints’ lives, linked to eschatological and liturgical time. In this collection, some chapters are devoted to the days when relics were discovered or transferred, the most sacred of which is, of course, the Holy Cross. Its discovery is the subject of an account that draws on earlier sources to trace the origins of the liturgical feast of May 3rd,—commemorating the event until its removal from the calendar in 1960. This episode is deeply connected to another feast (celebrated on September 14th), the Exaltation of the Holy Cross,10 which is also included in the Golden Legend and then depicted by Piero in Arezzo.

3.3. How the Episode Is Given a Christian Reinterpretation

If, as we saw earlier in the biblical narrative of 1 Kgs 10, the Queen of Sheba came to ‘test’ Solomon with mysterious riddles, the contents of which are unknown, the Golden Legend takes on the task of providing answers by explaining the content of this encounter. Of all the enigmas, the Queen of Sheba, symbol of universal wisdom, presents to Solomon one of the most significant and fascinating, that of the destiny of the True Cross. This is how exactly the story of the Cross came to intersect with the biblical story, as it is presented in the Golden Legend.

Following Jacques de Voragine, the Queen of Sheba plays a fundamental role in this narrative. Solomon was struck by the beauty of a tree that had been planted by Seth (at the request of the archangel Michael) on Adam’s tomb and was still alive in his time. He had it cut down to use it for the construction of his temple, but no place could be found for it, for sometimes it seemed too long and sometimes too short, so the workmen used it as a bridge to cross a lake. When the Queen of Sheba came to Jerusalem to consult Solomon’s wisdom, she saw in her mind that the Savior of the world would one day be tied to the wood of this tree. She therefore refused to set foot on it and instead knelt to venerate it (de Voragine 1910, pp. 259–66).

The story of the long journey that brings the Queen of Sheba to meet Solomon, therefore, takes on a meaning with an explicit Christian dimension. Through this journey, the Queen can identify the wood which will be used to build the holy Cross. She also provides Solomon with answers, as she holds fundamental information that becomes the focus of their meeting in Jacques de Voragine’s account and then in Piero’s depiction. As André Chastel pointed out (Chastel 1949, p. 109), in this narrative, the rereading by Jacques de Voragine, then followed by Piero della Francesca, condenses the ‘prophetic’ image that insists on the veneration of the Cross with an ‘epiphanic’ image of the Queen of Sheba, which defines the homage paid to Solomon.

Linking the coming of the Queen of Sheba to Adam, and then to Christ, through the wood that would become the holy Cross is part of a unifying interpretation of the divine and eternal plan of salvation. This wood runs through the ages of humanity, from the origin (Adam) towards the end (Christ), suggesting that resurrection can be understood in the light of creation. Such a reading is concerned with bringing together both sides of God’s Revelation. We can call it teleological, in the sense that it leads to fulfilment.

It is particularly remarkable that this transition between the first creation and the new one is accomplished through the figure of the Queen of Sheba, a foreign woman to the Jewish people. Her coming, motivated by her quest for wisdom from King Solomon, announces the access offered to all—including non-Jews—to salvation in Jesus Christ. Thus, from a typological perspective, the Queen of Sheba becomes a figure of the Church, whose mission is to open the gates of salvation to all. By her gesture, she anticipates the inclusion of foreign peoples in the divine covenant, underlining that the grace and truth revealed in Christ are destined for the whole of humanity.

3.4. The Queen of Sheba and King Solomon in Arezzo

The episodes of the journey of the Queen and the encounter with Solomon are summed up in the frescoes of Arezzo, which depict them in two juxtaposed scenes in the chancel, commissioned by the Bacci family in the Basilica of San Francesco (Figure 2) (Ginzburg 1983, pp. 40–48),11 a Franciscan church. While Solomon’s wisdom surpasses that of the Queen of Sheba in 1 Kgs 10, in the context of the story of the True Cross and its depiction by Piero della Francesca, the Queen of Sheba is elevated to the status of a Queen of sagacity (of whom Saint Helena—also represented in the same Chapel—would be the heiress) who can rival Solomon, to the point of providing him with knowledge he had not even thought of. In this cycle of the History of the True Cross, she is represented twice.

In the left scene (Figure 2), Piero depicts the procession accompanying the Queen of Sheba, represented in profile and idealized, dressed and coiffed in Renaissance fashion. The Queen is already kneeling on the right-hand side of the composition, having just recognized the wood of the cross on which the Savior of the world will die. Veneration of the holy wood follows this extraordinary discovery, which also denotes the Queen’s wisdom, since she is the only one able to identify this relic. The composition is airy, opening onto a vast landscape that metaphorically evokes the vast road travelled and already behind her. The Queen’s journey also expresses the spiritual journey of the pagans invited to abandon their errors, as suggested by Herrade de Landsberg in Hortus deliciarum in the 12th century (de Landsberg 1901, pp. 40–41). It has been seen as a symbol of the pagan world fascinated by the Christian faith; a foreshadowing of the journey linked to the Adoration of the Kings. This idea of foreigners recognizing the wisdom of Israel’s King or Messiah extends the concept—already mentioned—of an eschatological pilgrimage of the nations to Jerusalem according to the Old Testament.

In the right scene (Figure 2), the Queen is again depicted in profile, a Renaissance tribute to the most noble figures. This time, she is paying tribute to Solomon in a magnificent palace, reminding us that Solomon was a great builder, in accordance with the narrative in 1 Kgs 10. The king’s sad attitude can be explained by the content of this conversation. In fact, as we have seen and following the Golden Legend, here the Queen provides him significant information, as she informs Solomon of the fate of the wood she has just identified, to which the Savior of the World would one day be attached. For that reason, Solomon decides to have the wood removed and buried underground, as Jacques de Voragine explains.

The gesture that is exchanged between Solomon and the Queen of Sheba can also shed light on the religious and historical context of the 15th century. It is reminiscent of the ancient gesture of ‘concordia’ (‘agreement’) and refers to the tradition that, as early as the 12th century, the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon formed a couple expressing the Church and Jesus Christ. This scene has also been interpreted as an allusion to the hopes for religious unity between the Christian churches of the West (Solomon) and the East (the Queen of Sheba). A reconciliation attempt was made in 1439 at the Council of Florence, notably through Cardinal Bessarion, whose features seem to have been evoked in the portrait of Solomon (Longhi 1963; Ginzburg 1983, p. 54; Focillon 2011, pp. 32–33).

These scenes are therefore part of the salvation history, set in a sequence of events leading from the death of Adam to the salvation of mankind, but updated in the tradition of the 15th century. Salvation history is thus described through key stages in which the Queen of Sheba plays a fundamental role. The entire cycle of frescoes closes with the representation of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the final episode in the story following Jacques de Voragine’s Golden Legend, depicted opposite The Death of Adam. This first event is thus profoundly linked to the last, following the divine plan, overlaying liturgical and eschatological time in a new revisited macro-narrative and figurative structure.

4. Conclusions

The episode of the Queen of Sheba—as described in the first book of Kings—turns out to serve a complex literary and theological strategy in 1 Kgs 3–11. While the pericope of 1 Kgs 10.1–13 praises the judicial wisdom of the great King of Jerusalem, the whole into which it is inserted highlights the incomparability of God’s justice, which is beyond the limits and temptations of human power. The king’s prayer in 1 Kgs 8.30–61 presents YHWH—and not the king—as the one who truly exercises law and justice in Israel, highlighting the notion of forgiveness for all sinners, starting with Solomon. But disregarding the complexity of Solomon’s character, most of the later rereadings of the episode of the meeting between Solomon and the Queen of Sheba will mainly focus on the over-exalted portrait of the wise king, opening up new interpretations. The limited information provided in the biblical account of this encounter has allowed significant interpretive freedom, fostering the development of various narratives and visual representation. The Golden Legend played a crucial role in transmitting a reimagined image of the Queen of Sheba—an image subsequently reinterpreted by the Renaissance painter Piero della Francesca. His depiction of the episode has contributed to the lasting visual and cultural memory of this figure, despite the decline in the Golden Legend’s influence from the 17th century onwards (it has even been disparagingly referred to as a ‘legend of lead’). His frescoes will be greatly appreciated, especially from the end of the 19th century onwards, thanks to Stendhal’s History of Painting (Stendhal [1817] 1996), Burckhardt’s Cicerone, or the writings of Roberto Longhi and Henri Focillon, among others. Art historian Bernard Berenson (Berenson 1954), who drew a comparison between Piero’s work and that of Paul Cézanne, celebrated the silent, meditative and solemn style of theses representations, which he described as ‘ineloquent’ and ‘existential’, and which would perpetuate a renewed image of the Queen of Sheba, the solemn image of the Queen Prophetess.