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How did Solomon decide which woman was the mother of a baby in the biblical story?
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Solomon
The Judgment of Solomon, oil on canvas by Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1617; in the Statens Museum for Kunst (National Gallery of Denmark), Copenhagen.
In the biblical account of Solomon, his legendary wisdom was demonstrated when two women each claimed to be the mother of the same infant. To resolve the dispute, Solomon proposed that the child be divided into two halves, with each woman receiving one part.1
He determined the true mother by observing the reactions of both women to this suggestion. The woman who protested and pleaded for the childās life to be spared, even if it meant giving the baby to her rival, was identified by Solomon as the real mother.1