In this painting, Ivar Arosenius interprets a well known motif from the Old Testament. The chaste and beautiful Susanna, married to Joakim, is pursued by two old judges. When she rejects their unwanted advances, in revenge they accuse her of adultery. The innocent Susanna is sentenced to death by stoning, but the young prophet Daniel reveals the Elders’ lies and their attempted rape. Susanna regains her freedom and honour.

This morality tale provoked great interest amongst artists throughout the ages. The subject was painted by, among others, Jacobo Tintoretto, Artemisia Gentileschi and Peter Paul Rubens, whose version from 1614 could have been studied by Arosenius at the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm.

Arosenius’s version of this fundamentally serious subject is wryly playful. Jokes and laughter are his way of expressing antipathy towards the formal manner. Even though his Susanna evades the Elders’ advances, she seems mildly amused rather than frightened. Her naked, almost burly, full-figured body is contained within continuous contour lines.

The men are dressed in Orientalist costumes that Arosenius could have borrowed from any number of fairytale illustrations. The meadow in the foreground is covered with stylised flowers, and recalls the pattern of a Tabriz carpet.

The painting is an example of how Arosenius would use classic motifs in order to freely rearrange environments, interpretative frameworks and conventions in his own tales. Arosenius returned to the subject of Susanna and the Elders in different versions in his drawings and watercolours. In the small watercolour (cat no 19) with the same title as the present work, Susanna seems able to deal with her tormentors by herself.