Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
Christ Crucified between the Two Thieves: 'The Three Crosses'
Artist
Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
Additional Description
Drypoint with engraving on laid paper, watermark Strasbourg Bend (barely visible; comp. Hinterding D-a-a or D-a-b). (1653, revised c. 1655). 38.8 x 45.4 cm (sheet).
Details
Bartsch 78; White/Boon 78 IV(of V); Hinterding/Rutgers (The New Hollstein) 274 IV (of V).
Period
(1606 Leiden - Amsterdam 1669)
Technique
Druckgrafik
Provenance
D. G. Arozarena, South America and Paris, born c. 1810, verso with the collector's stamp (Lugt 109); his sale in Paris at the Hôtel Drouot on 11 March 1861, and the following days, lot 591, marked 'belle épreuve'; Neville Davison Goldsmid, The Hague, 1814–1875, verso with the collector's stamp (Lugt 1962); his sale from 25 to 27 April 1876, in Paris at the Hôtel Drouot; Mary Jane Morgan, New York, died before 1886, verso with the collector's stamp (Lugt 1879); auction of her collection in New York, American Art Association, 3 to 15 March 1886 (109 items of graphic art by Rembrandt); Emil M. Baerwald Collection, New York and Berlin, early 20th century, verso with the collector's stamp (Lugt 885c); not included in the auction of his collection at C. G. Boerner in Leipzig on 27 April 1931; presumably by descent to his wife Jenny Baerwald (1880-1965), New York; Private Collection, USA;Klipstein and Kornfeld, Bern, auction 102, 7 June 1961, lot 39;Otto Schäfer, Schweinfurt, 1912–2000, verso with the collector's stamp 'OS' (not in Lugt). In the auction catalogue of his Rembrandt collection at Sotheby's, New York, 13 May 1993, lot 23; Private collection, Bavaria.
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Description
A very fine, rich impression of the fourth state (of five), printing darkly and evenly with strong plate tone suffused with burr and with dramatic contrasts; after the plate was heavily reworked. Thread margins, trimmed to or on the platemark in places.
This major work within Rembrandt’s graphic oeuvre is a composition executed exclusively with burin and drypoint, created in 1653. The third state bears the artist’s signature and date in the plate; the profound revision leading to the fourth state likely took place around 1655.
In this final state, reworked by Rembrandt himself, the composition undergoes a dramatic transformation. Whereas the first to third states convey a sense of activity and relative brightness, particularly in the central parts of the plate, the fourth state presents a markedly different scene: the composition is condensed, numerous areas are redefined, and several figures are mirrored or repositioned. Of particular note is the transformation of the horseman beside the thief on the left – Rembrandt likely based this figure on a medal by Pisanello, which was probably part of his personal collection.
The fourth state captures the final moment in Christ’s Passion on Golgotha: Christ has died, nature is in upheaval, and darkness falls over the scene. The expressive power and visual intensity of this version make it one of the most compelling examples of Rembrandt’s masterful handling of the etching needle and of printmaking as a whole.
Following Rembrandt’s death, the plate came into the possession of the Amsterdam print dealer Frans Carelse, about whom little is known. Carelse inscribed his name into the plate and printed a very limited number of impressions, which are now of extreme rarity. The subsequent fate of the plate is unknown; no later reprints are recorded.
A restoration at the top centre, smoothed centrefold and other minor restorations; thin abraded line in the upper centre, otherwise in good condition.