National Gallery of Art :: The Collection :: Lucretia
  • Overview
  • Inscription
  • Provenance
  • Exhibition History
  • Bibliography

Overview

The tragic story of Lucretia, recounted by Livy (59 BC – 17 AD), took place in Rome in the 6th century BC during the reign of the tyrannical ruler Tarquinius Superbus. Rembrandt, who specialized in history paintings, portrays Lucretia in utter anguish, right before her act of suicide. The tension surrounding that awful moment poignantly captures the moral dilemma of a woman forced to choose between life and honor.

Lucretia's husband, Collatinus, had boasted to his fellow soldiers that her loyalty and virtue were greater than that of their wives. Taking him up on the challenge, the men immediately rode to Rome, where they found Lucretia and her handmaidens spinning wool. Lucretia's very virtue enflamed the desire of Sextus Tarquinius, son of the tyrant, and he secretly returned to her house a few days later. Lucretia received him as an honored guest, but he later betrayed that hospitality by entering her chamber and threatening to kill her if she did not yield to his advances. The next day Lucretia summoned her father and husband, disclosed what had happened, and told them that, even though they deemed her an innocent victim, she was determined to end her life in order to reclaim her honor. She then drew a knife from her robe, drove it into her heart, and died. Overwhelmed by grief and anger, Lucretia's father, her husband, and two friends swore to avenge her death. Lucretia's rape and suicide triggered a revolt that led to the overthrow of monarchical tyranny and the creation of the Roman Republic.

Inscription

center left: Rembrandt / 1664

Marks and Labels

null

Provenance

Jean-Joseph-Pierre-Augustin Lapeyrière [1779-1831, known as Augustin Lapeyrière, then de Lapeyrière], Paris; (his sale, Galerie Le Brun, Paris, 19 April 1825 and days following [originally scheduled for 14 March 1825 and days following], no. 143). Michael M. Zachary [d. 1837], London;[1] (sale, Phillips, London, 14-15 April 1826, 1st day, no. 64, bought in) ; (Zachary sale, Phillips, London, 31 May 1828, no. 25); purchased by Sir Thomas Lawrence [1769-1830] for Hugh Andrew Johnstone Munro [1797-1864], London, and Novar House, near Evanton, Ross-shire, Scotland.[2] Paul Pavlovich Demidoff [1839-1885], Prince of San Donato, near Florence; (his sale, at his residence, Florence, 15 March-10 April 1880, no. 1146). (Léon Gauchez, Paris); (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 13 July 1889, no. 56, bought in); (Léon Gauchez, Paris), until at least 1899.[3] (Bourgeois & Cie., Paris). (Leo Nardus, Suresnes, France, and New York).[4] Matthew Chaloner Durfee Borden [1842-1912], New York, by 1906;[5] (his estate sale, American Art Association, New York, 13-14 February 1913, 1st day, no. 28); (M. Knoedler & Co., New York and Paris);[6] sold 1913 to (Frederik Müller and Co., Amsterdam); sold 1913 to August Janssen [1863-1918], Amsterdam;[7] his estate; sold with the entire Janssen collection to (Jacques Goudstikker, Amsterdam).[8] Hermann Heilbuth [1861-1945], Copenhagen, by 1920.[9] (Ehrich Brothers, New York), in 1921.[10] (M. Knoedler & Co., New York and Paris); sold November 1921 to Andrew W. Mellon, Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C.; deeded 28 December 1934 to The A.W. Mellon Educational and Charitable Trust, Pittsburgh; gift 1937 to NGA.

[1] Although the main seller at the April 1826 sale was Lord Berwick, there were also other consignors. One annotation in the Wallace Collection (London) Library’s copy of the sale catalogue indicates that Zachary was the consigner of the NGA painting; another annotation next to the Lucretia entry reads “Sir T Lawrence.” The Getty Provenance Index© Database, Sale Catalogs, lot 0064 from sale catalog Br-2806, identifies the latter annotation as indicating a previous owner.

[2] This information is given by Cornelis Hofstede de Groot, Beschreibendes und kritisches Verzeichnis der Werke der hervorragendsten holländischen Maler des XVII. Jahrhunderts, 10 vols., Esslingen and Paris, 1907–1928: 6(1915):120, no. 218 (also English edition, Cornelis Hofstede de Groot, A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century, trans. Edward G. Hawke, 8 vols., London, 1907–1927: 6:143–144, no. 218). However, the Wallace Collection (London) Library’s copy of the sale catalogue is annotated with the name “Woodin” as the buyer (The Getty Provenance Index© Database, Sale Catalogs, lot 0025 from sale catalog BR-3135). Munro acquired a significant collection that was dispersed in sales both before and after his death, but the painting has not been located in any of the sale catalogues. Hofstede de Groot lists a Munro sale in London on 26 March 1859 (given as 26 March 1851, in the 1920-1921 exhibition catalogue), which has not been identified; the painting does not appear in a sale of Munro’s English pictures held in London on 26 March 1860.

[3] Although Algernon Graves, Art Sales from early in the eighteenth century to early in the twentieth century (mostly old master and early English pictures), 3 vols. London, 1918-1921: 2:383, gives the buyer at the 1889 sale as Wontner, the painting was in fact bought in and returned to the consignor, Gauchez. This information was kindly provided by Lynda McLeod, Librarian, Christie’s Archives, London, in her e-mail of 28 March 2013 (in NGA curatorial files). Emile Michel (Rembrandt, his life, his work, and his time, trans. Florence Simmonds, 2 vols., New York, 1894: 2:170) saw the painting in Paris, but did not identify the owner, who is named by Malcolm Bell (Rembrandt Van Rijn and His Work, London, 1899: 157).

[4] Jonathan Lopez kindly provided this information (oral communication, 13 October 2006). See also Jonathan Lopez, "'Gross False Pretences': The Misdeeds of Art Dealer Leo Nardus," Apollo, 2nd ser., vol. 166, no. 548 (December 2007): 76-83.

[5] Wilhelm von Bode and Cornelis Hofstede de Groot, The Complete Work of Rembrandt: History, Description and Heliographic Reproduction of All the Master's Pictures, with a Study of His Life and His Art, trans. Florence Simonds, 8 vols, Paris, 1897-1906: 8(1906):595.

[6] Newspapers speculated that Knoedler’s might have been buying for the New York collector Henry Clay Frick; copies of various articles are in NGA curatorial files.

[7] The 1913 sales are described by Ben Broos, Great Dutch Paintings from America, exh. cat. The Hague and Zwolle, 1990: 69-70. See also Gerhardus Knuttel, "De Lucretia En Andere Werken Van Rembrandt Bij De Firma Fred. Muller & Co. Amsterdam," Elsevier’s Geïllustreerd Maandschrift 47, no. 2 (January-June 1914): 137-144.

[8] “Janssen Paintings Sold in Holland,” The Milwaukee Journal (3 August 1919): 10; Otto Hirschmann, “Die Sammlung August Janssen,” Der Cicerone 12 (January 1920): 17-18.

[9] The painting was included in a 1920-1921 exhibition of Heilbuth’s collection in Copenhagen.

[10] René Gimpel, Journal d’un collectionneur: marchand de tableaux, Paris, 1963: 184-185.

Exhibition History

1832
British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom, London, 1832, no. 44.
1909
The Hudson-Fulton Celebration, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1909, no. 105.
1920
A Collection of Paintings [H. Heilbuth], Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen, 1920-1921, no. 63.
1969
Rembrandt in the National Gallery of Art [Commemorating the Tercentenary of the Artist's Death], National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1969, no. 23, repro.
1991
Rembrandt's Lucretias, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Minneapolis Institute of Arts, 1991-1992, brochure.
2001
Rembrandt's Women, National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh; Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2001, no. 141, repro.

Bibliography

1829
Smith, John. A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch, Flemish and French Painters. 9 vols. London, 1829-1842: 192.
1854
Waagen, Gustav Friedrich. Treasures of Art in Great Britain: Being an Account of the Chief Collections of Paintings, Drawings, Sculptures, Illustrated Mss., etc. etc. 3 vols. London, 1854: 2:137, no. 1.
1860
Waagen, Gustav Friedrich. Handbook of Painting: The German, Flemish and Dutch Schools. Based on the Handbook of Kugler. 2 vols. London, 1860: 2:345.
1868
Vosmaer 1868, 314, 497 (also 1877 ed.: 367, 573).
1873
Blanc, Charles. L'Oeuvre de Rembrandt.... 2 vols. Paris, 1873: 2:435.
1879
Mollett, John W. Rembrandt. New York and London, 1879: 95.
1883
Bode, Wilhelm von. Studien zur Geschichte der holländischen Malerei. Braunschweig, 1883: 524, 608-609, no. 375.
1885
Dutuit 1885, 60, 70, repro.
1886
Michel, Émile. Les Artistes Célèbres: Rembrandt. Paris, 1886: 97, repro., 99.
1892
Müntz, Eugene. "Rembrandt et l'art italien." Gazette des Beaux-Arts 34 (July 1892): 196-211.
1893
Michel 1893, 2:170-171 (also 1894 English ed.).
1897
Bode, Wilhelm von, assisted by Cornelis Hofstede de Groot. The Complete Work of Rembrandt. Trans. Florence Simonds. 8 vols. Paris, 1897-1906: 8(1906):152, no. 595, repro.
1899
Bell, Malcolm. Rembrandt van Rijn and His Work. London, 1899 (2nd. edition, 1907): xvi, 86, 157.
1905
Veth, Jan. "Rembrandtiana. I. Rembrandt's wijze van adapteeren." Onze Kunst 4 (July-December 1905): 79-90.
1906
Michel, Émile. Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn: A Memorial of His Tercentenary. New York, 1906: 110-111.
1906
Rosenberg 1906 (1908 ed.), 564, no. 467.
1906
Veth, Jan. "Rembrandts Anpassungsort." Kunst und Künstler 4 (June 1906): 231-242.
1907
Hofstede de Groot, Cornelis. A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century.... 8 vols., translated from the German edition. London, 1907-1917: 6(1916):143-144, no. 218.
1909
The Hudson-Fulton Celebration. Exh cat. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1909: no. 105.
1910
Waldmann, Emil. "Die Ausstellung holländischer Gemälde des 17. Jahrunderts in New York." Zeitschrift für Bildende Kunst 21 (January 1910): 73-85, repro. 76.
1911
Valentiner, Wilhelm R. Old and Modern Masters in the Collection of M. C. D. Borden. 2 vols. New York, 1911: 1:11, 44, no. 7, repro. opp. 44.
1914
Beets, N. "Een 'print van Rafel' en Rembrandt's Lucretia." Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant, 1 January 1914: 1.
1914
Knuttel, Gerhardus. "De Lucretia en Andere Werken van Rembrandt Bij de Firma Fred. Muller & Co. Amsterdam." Elsevier's Geïllustreerd Maandschrift 47 (February 1914): 139-144, repro.
1914
Veth, Jan. "Rembrandt's Lucretia." Keelden en Groepen 25 (1914): 116-126.
1915
Havelaar, Just. Oud-Hollandsche figuurschilders. Haarlem, 1915: 154-155.
1920
Hirschmann, Otto. "Die Sammlung August Janssen." Der Cicerone 12 (January 1920): 17-26, 69-75.
1920
Madsen, Karl. Catalogue of a Collection of Paintings: Exhibited in the Danish Museum of Fine Art. Copenhagen, 1920: 108-111, fig. 63, repro.
1921
Gold, Alfred. "Die Sammlung Hielbuth." Der Cicerone 13 (March 1921): 89-93, repro. 91.
1923
Meldrum 1923, 203, no. 444, pl. 444, repro.
1926
Weisbach, Werner. Rembrandt. Berlin and Leipzig, 1926: 571, fig. 192, repro.
1931
Valentiner 1931, no. 164, repro.
1932
Rijckevorsel, J.L.A.A.M. van. Rembrandt en de Traditie. Rotterdam, 1932: 222.
1935
Bredius, Abraham. Rembrandt, Schilderijen. Vienna, 1935. English ed., Oxford, 1942: 484, repro. (also 1936 English ed.).
1937
Jewell, Edward Alden. "Mellon's Gift." Magazine of Art 30, no. 2 (February 1937): 82.
1941
Preliminary Catalogue of Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1941: 165.
1941
Kieser, Emil. "Über Rembrandts Verhältnis zur Antike." Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 10 (1941/1942): 142.
1942
Book of Illustrations. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942: 240, repro. 30.
1943
Benesch, Otto. "The Rembrandt Paintings in the National Gallery of Art." The Art Quarterly 6 (Winter 1943): 20-33, fig. 14, repro., 33.
1948
Rosenberg 1948, 1:170, 2:unpaginated, fig. 245.
1949
Paintings and Sculpture from the Mellon Collection. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1949 (reprinted 1953 and 1958): 76, repro.
1950
Stechow, Wolfgang. Review of Jakob Rosenberg, Rembrandt, 2 vols., Cambridge, 1948. The Art Bulletin 32 (September 1950): 252-255.
1951
Stechow, Wolfgang. "Lucretia Statua." In Essays in Honor of Georg Swarzenski. Chicago and Berlin, 1951: 114-124, note 46.
1959
Benesch, Otto. "Rembrandt and Ancient History." The Art Quarterly 22 (Winter 1959): 308-333.
1963
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.. New York, 1963 (reprinted 1964 in French, German, and Spanish): 314, repro.
1964
Rosenberg 1964, 286, 360, no. 245, note 33a, repro. 286.
1965
Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 109.
1966
Bauch, Kurt. Rembrandt Gemälde. Berlin, 1966: 15, no. 284, repro.
1966
Cairns, Huntington, and John Walker, eds., A Pageant of Painting from the National Gallery of Art. 2 vols. New York, 1966: 1:234, color repro.
1966
Gimpel, René. Diary of an Art Dealer. Translated by John Rosenberg. New York, 1966: 161.
1966
Rosenberg, Jakob, Seymour Slive, and E. H. ter Kuile. Dutch Art and Architecture: 1600-1800. Baltimore, 1966: 74 (rev. ed., London, 1984).
1967
Livermore, Ann. "Rembrandt and Jansen: a new interpretation." Apollo 85 (April 1967): 240-245, fig. 9.
1968
Gerson 1968, 430, 503, no. 373, repro. 431.
1968
European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1968: 97, repro.
1969
Gerson/Bredius 1969, 596, no. 484, repro. 394.
1969
Haak, Bob. Rembrandt: His Life, His Work, His Time. New York, 1969: 313, no. 531, color repro.
1969
Held, Julius S. Rembrandt's 'Aristotle' and Other Rembrandt Studies. Princeton, 1969: 95, fig. 3, repro.
1969
NGA Rembrandt 1969, no. 23.
1970
Otto Benesch Collected Writings. Eva Benesch, ed. 2 vols. London and New York, 1970: 1:140-146, fig. 119, repro.
1973
Held, Julius S. "Das gesprochene Wort bei Rembrandt." In Neue Beiträge zur Rembrandt Forschung. Otto van Simson and Jan Kelch, eds. Berlin, 1973: 111-125, repro. 78.
1975
European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 284, repro.
1975
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. New York, 1975: 283, no. 375, color repro.
1976
Sonnenburg, Hubert von. "Maltechnische Gesichtspunkte zur Rembrandtforschung." Maltechnik-Restauro 82 (1976): 14.
1977
Broos, Ben P. J. Index to the Formal Sources of Rembrandt's Art. Maarssen, 1977: 49-50.
1979
Strauss, Walter L., and Marjon van der Meulen. The Rembrandt Documents. New York, 1979: 418.
1984
Schwartz 1984/1985, 330, no. 382, repro. (also 1985 English ed.).
1984
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 283, no. 369, color repro., as by Rembrandt van Ryn.
1985
European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 329, repro.
1986
Guillaud, Jacqueline, and Maurice Guillaud. Rembrandt: das Bild der Menschen. Paris, 1986: 371, color repro. (also English ed., The Human Form and Spirit, trans. Elizabeth Willems-Treeman, New York, 1986).
1986
Sutton, Peter C. A Guide to Dutch Art in America. Grand Rapids and Kampen, 1986: 313.
1986
Tümpel 1986, 403, no. 114, repro. 349.
1989
Garrard, Mary D. Artemisia Gentileschi: The Image of the Female Hero in Italian Baroque Art. Princeton, 1989: 237-239, no. 203, repro. 239.
1990
Buijsen, Edwin. In Ben P. J. Broos, et al., Great Dutch Paintings from America, exh. cat. Mauritsuis, The Hague; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, The Hague and Zwolle, 1990: 60-77, repro. 69.
1991
Bal, Mieke. Reading "Rembrandt": Beyond the Word-Image Opposition. Cambridge and New York, 1991: 64-74, 102, 105, 122, 140, 169, 245, 362, 448 note 45, repro. 2.1.
1991
Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr., and George Keyes. Rembrandt's Lucretias. Exh. brochure, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1991.
1995
Wheelock, Jr., Arthur K. Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1995: 280-287, color repro. 281.
1997
Rembrandt, Rubens, and the Art of their Time: Recent Perspectives, Pennsylvania, 1997, no. 1-7, repro.
1998
Gibson, Sarah S. "Adultery." In Encyclopedia of Comparative Iconography: Themes Depicted in Works of Art. Edited by Helene E. Roberts. 2 vols. Chicago, 1998: 1:31.
1999
Schama, Simon. Rembrandt's Eyes. New York, 1999: 660-663, color repro.
1999
Zuffi, Stefano and Francesca Castria, La peinture baroque. Translated from Italian by Silvia Bonucci and Claude Sophie Mazéas. Paris, 1999: 184, color repro.
2004
Hand, John Oliver. National Gallery of Art: Master Paintings from the Collection. Washington and New York, 2004: 200-201, no. 157, color repro.
2011
Quodbach, Esmée. "Henry Clay Frick Collects Rembrandt 1899-1919." In Rembrandt and His School: Masterworks from the Frick and Lugt Collections. Exh. cat., Frick Collection, 2011. New York, 2011: 20-21, color fig. 10.

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