424 - Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606 Leiden – Amsterdam 1669), Christ Preaching (“La Petite Tombe”).

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606 Leiden – Amsterdam 1669), Christ Preaching (“La Petite Tombe”). Etching and drypoint on laid paper, Strasbourg Lily watermark (cf. Hinterding, variant B-h). (c. 1657). 15.3 x 20.6 cm (sheet). Bartsch 67; White/Boon 67 I (of II); Hinterding/Rutgers (The New Hollstein) 298 I (of II). Provenance: Albertina, Vienna, with its duplicate stamp on the reverse (Lugt 5f), used for duplicates deaccessioned from 1922 onward. A good, clear, and evenly printed impression, with the watermark cited by Hinterding (New Hollstein, p. 270) as characteristic of impressions from the first state. The composition is remarkable for its intensity. Von Seidlitz considered it one of Rembrandt’s greatest compositions, distinguished by its unity and powerful effects of light. For individual figures and gestures, Rembrandt drew upon earlier masters, while the semicircular arrangement of the figures around Christ has been linked to Raphael’s “Disputa.” Yet through his masterful use of chiaroscuro, Rembrandt transformed these sources into an atmospheric and highly individual composition, in which Christ and his listeners form a remarkably unified group, free from Baroque theatricality. The traditional title “La Petite Tombe” stems from a misunderstanding. In the 1679 inventory of the Amsterdam print dealer Clement de Jonghe, the plate was described as “La toombisch plaatjens,” referring to the collector La Tombe, brother of Rembrandt’s friend Jacob de La Tombe, who had previously owned the plate. The name was subsequently mistaken for the French “la tombe” (“the tomb”), perhaps due to the raised platform on which Christ stands, which could be interpreted as a sarcophagus (Schaar). The plate was separated at an early date from those later acquired by Basan, was purchased by Colnaghi’s, London, in 1830, and has not been traced since. It is now considered lost. – The upper right and both lower corner tips show minute paper losses; backed on the reverse. The upper left corner is slightly rubbed on the reverse. A small area of paper loss at the upper left edge has been backed and skillfully retouched. The reverse side has a flattened central vertical fold and traces and remnants of a previous mounting. Otherwise in good condition. Taxation: subject to differential taxation (VAT: Margin Scheme).