Christ Preaching (The Hundred Guilder Print)

c. 1649

Rembrandt van Rijn

Artist, Dutch, 1606 - 1669

Printed with black lines and deep, velvety shading on tan-colored paper, a man, Jesus, stands at the center of a crowd of more than two dozen people, mostly adults and a few children, in this horizontal etching and drypoint. Jesus is left of center. He stands facing us, but he turns his head to look to our left. Rays of light emanate from behind his head against the towering cave opening that surrounds him. His curly hair falls long over his shoulders, and he holds both hands out. His eyes are lightly incised, giving them an almost blurred look. A crowd of people lie or kneel to our right. Some use crutches or walking sticks, and some are on carts. All the people appear to have pale skin except for one with darker-toned skin to the right in this gathering. That person has a rounded nose, full lips, and wears an earring that gleams brightly in the deep shadows. A camel stands at the far side of this group under an arched opening. The people standing and one person sitting close to Jesus to the left are fully shaded, and those farther left are lightly outlined and sparsely shaded so they appear to be much lighter on the white paper. Close to Jesus are a woman holding a baby, a seated, clean-shaven young man, and several bearded men. Most of those who are along the left edge of the sheet wear turbans or floppy caps.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching, drypoint and burin on Japan paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 28 × 39.3 cm (11 × 15 1/2 in.)
    sheet: 31.3 × 42.9 cm (12 5/16 × 16 7/8 in.)

  • Accession

    1943.3.7173

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    White/Boon 1969, no. 74, State ii/ii

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Lessing Julius Rosenwald (Lugt 1760b) purchased from Abraham S. W. Rosenbach; given to the National Gallery of Art 1943

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1930

  • Prints and Drawings by Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) from the Collections of Lessing J. Rosenwald, Pennsylvania Museum of Art, 1930

  • Rembrandt Etchings: Lent by Mr. Lessing J. Rosenwald, Philadelphia Art Alliance, 1930.

1932

  • Etchings by Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) from the Collections of Lessing J. Rosenwald, Sears, Roebuck, and Co. Art Galleries, Washington, D.C., 1932.

1935

  • Paintings, Drawings, and Etchings by Rembrandt and his Circle, Art Institute of Chicago, IL, 1935-1936, no. 85.

1945

  • Prints from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, John Herron Art Institute, Indianapolis, IN, 1945, no. 48.

1947

  • Loan Exhibition of Paintings by Frans Hals and Rembrandt, Los Angeles County Museum, 1947, no. 22.

1948

  • Fiftieth Anniversary Exhibition of the Art of Europe During the XVIth-XVIIth Centuries, Worcester Art Museum, 1948.

1953

  • Masterpieces of Graphic Art from the Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1953-1954, no catalogue.

1955

  • Miniatures and Prints from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1955, no catalogue.

1956

  • Marion Koogler McNay Art Institute, San Antonio, TX, 1956-1957.

  • Masterpieces of Graphic Art from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1956, no cat.

1958

  • Drawings and Prints by Rembrandt from the Rosenwald and Widener Collections, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1958, no catalogue.

1960

  • Gothic to Baroque, Allentown Art Museum, 1960, no. 75, repro.

1973

  • Etchings by Rembrandt, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1973, no catalogue.

Bibliography

1923

  • Hind, Arthur M. A Catalogue of Rembrandt's Etchings. London: Methuen and Co. Ltd., 1923.

1969

  • White, Christopher and Karel G. Boon. Rembrandt's Etchings. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Van Gendt & Co., 1969.

1991

  • Kopper, Philip. America's National Gallery of Art: A Gift to the Nation. New York, 1991: 210, repro.

Wikidata ID

Q65024680

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