Bathsheba is a figure from the Hebrew Bible. She is most known for the story in which she was summoned by King David, who had seen her bathing, seduced her, and impregnated her. As Bathsheba was already married to a soldier named Uriah, David attempted to recall Uriah so he would re-consummate his marriage. When this attempt failed, David arranged for Uriah to be killed in battle so that he could marry Bathsheba. Though the child of this union died in infancy, Bathsheba later bore David's heir, Solomon.
This 1654 painting by Willem Drost, titled Bathsheba Holding King David's Letter, is one of numerous paintings depicting the story of Bathsheba. It is contemporaneous with Rembrandt's Bathsheba at Her Bath, which likewise depicts the nude subject holding a letter from David.Painting: Willem Drost