Man in Oriental Costume

c. 1635

Rembrandt van Rijn

Painter, Dutch, 1606 - 1669

Govaert Flinck

Painter, Dutch, 1615 - 1660

Shown from the waist up, a bearded man with a tanned, peachy complexion wears a turban and voluminous robes and looks out at us in this vertical portrait painting. Lit strongly from the left, the man’s brow is slightly furrowed over brown eyes, and his gray beard is trimmed. His turban is accented with a gold chain and feather, and his fur-lined robe is clasped over a burgundy-red garment with another gold chain. His right hand, on our left, grasps a sash that wraps around his waist, while his other hand rests on a wooden staff. The gray background behind the man deepens into shadows at the corners. The artist’s signature is painted to our left near the man’s upper arm. The first letter “R” is missing so it reads “embrandt ft.”

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After learning the fundamentals of drawing and painting in his native Leiden, Rembrandt van Rijn went to Amsterdam in 1624 to study for six months with Pieter Lastman (1583–1633), a famous history painter. Upon completion of his training Rembrandt returned to Leiden. Around 1632 he moved to Amsterdam, quickly establishing himself as the town’s leading artist, specializing in history paintings and portraiture. He received many commissions and attracted a number of students who came to learn his method of painting.

In this imposing half-length image, a bearded man wearing an elaborate, bejeweled turban stares out at the viewer, his features strongly modeled by light streaming in from the left. A fur-lined cape, loosely clasped at the neck with a gold chain, covers his shoulders. His right hand grasps the sash that wraps around his waist, while his other hand rests on a wooden staff. An aigrette, a type of pin with a tuft of ornamental bird feathers that was a standard part of Ottoman attire, secures a heavy gold chain on the man’s turban.

Rembrandt, as a history painter, was particularly intrigued by the Middle East, where so many of the Biblical stories he frequently depicted had taken place. Rembrandt’s paintings, drawings, and etchings of the 1630s included numerous figures who wear Middle-Eastern garb. By the early seventeenth century the commercial enterprises of Dutch merchants had reached the Middle East, so exotically dressed foreigners were a familiar sight in the streets and marketplaces of Amsterdam. Exotic attire became a fashion fad, and Dutch men, including Rembrandt himself, would sometimes be portrayed wearing similar outfits. At the same time, Dutch collectors avidly sought to acquire exotica from all parts of the world, including shells, swords, musical instruments, and costumes, which they would then display for visitors to admire. Rembrandt owned such a collection, known as a kunstkamer, or cabinet of curiosities. His encyclopedic holdings of art and artifacts served as props for Rembrandt and his students, but the artist was also motivated to amass such a collection by his desire to be recognized as a full-fledged member of the class of gentlemen-collectors.

On View

West Building Main Floor, Gallery 48


Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on linen

  • Credit Line

    Andrew W. Mellon Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall: 98.5 × 74.5 cm (38 3/4 × 29 5/16 in.)
    framed: 128.91 × 104.78 × 9.53 cm (50 3/4 × 41 1/4 × 3 3/4 in.)

  • Accession

    1940.1.13

More About this Artwork


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Johan Ernst Gotzkowsky [1710-1775], Berlin, by 1756 until at least 1766;[1] sold to Heinrich, prince of Prussia [1726-1802];[2] sold to Catherine II, empress of Russia [1729-1796], Saint Petersburg, by 1773;[3] Imperial Hermitage Gallery, Saint Petersburg; sold between June 1930 and April 1931, as a painting by Rembrandt, through (Matthiesen Gallery, Berlin; P. & D. Colnaghi & Co., London; and M. Knoedler & Co., New York) to Andrew W. Mellon, Pittsburgh and Washington; his estate; deeded 8 March 1938 to The A.W. Mellon Educational and Charitable Trust, Pittsburgh; gift 1940 to NGA.
[1] Gotzkowsky originally bought the picture on behalf of Friedrich II (the Great), king of Prussia (1712-1786). Due to the financial straits of Prussia during the Seven Years' War (1756-1762), the painting remained in Gotzkowsky's hands. The inscription on a reproductive etching of the painting (in reverse) by Georg Friedrich Schmidt notes that it was in Gotzkowsky's collection in 1756, and Burton Fredericksen kindly brought to the Gallery's attention two catalogues of the Gotzkowsky collection that include the painting and thus extend Gotzkowsky's ownership (see letter of 2 January 2003 to Arthur Wheelock and e-mails of 2 April and 14 July [first message] 2003 to Molli Kuenstner, in NGA curatorial files). The first catalogue is Matthieu Oesterreich's Description de quelques tableaux de différens Maîtres (published 1757), in which the painting is number 33. The second, also compiled by Oesterreich, is Catalogue d'une très-belle collection de tableaux de différens Maîtres italiens, flamands, allemands et françois laquelle se trouve dans la maison de Mr. Ernest Gotzkowsky (Berlin, 1766). Fredericksen determined that the second catalogue includes paintings that Gotzkowsky had not sold to Catherine II, empress of Russia, which is confirmed by the fact that there is only a single Rembrandt painting included, number 146, the NGA painting, whereas Catherine had acquired more than a dozen Rembrandt paintings from Gotzkowsky in 1764. Fredericksen writes of the 1766 Gotzkowsky catalogue: "...in general [the paintings] do not appear to be of comparable importance to those we know had been sold. So we are undoubtedly dealing with the remnants of the collection as it appeared after the transaction of 1764."
[2] Gerd Bartoschek and Christoph Frank have located the painting in inventories of the Prince's collections. See: Gerd Bartoschek, Flämische Barockmalerei in der Bildergalerie von Sanssouci, Potsdam, 1985: 79-80; Christoph Frank, "Die Gemäldesammlungen Gotzkowsky, Eimbke und Stein: Zur Berliner Sammlungsgeschichte während des Siebenjährigen Krieges," in Michael North, ed., Kunstammeln und Geschmack im 18. Jahrhundert, Berlin, 2002: 117-194; Christoph Frank, "Un ours, un suicide et quelques tableaux. Le rôle de Berlin dans la constitution des collections rembranesques en Russie, à l'époque de Catherine II," in Rembrandt et son école: Collections du musée de l'Ermitage de Saint-Pétersbourg, exh. cat., Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, Paris, 2003: 51-63. Burton Fredericksen brought Frank's research to the Gallery's attention (see e-mails of 14 July 2003 [both messages] and 23 February 2004, to Molli Kuenstner, in NGA curatorial files).
[3] [Ernst von Münnich.] "Catalogue raisonné des tableaux qui se trouvent dans les Galeries, Sallons et Cabinets du Palais Impérial de S. Pétersbourg, commencé en 1773 et continué jusqu’en 1785.” 3 vols. Manuscript, Fund 1, Opis’ VI-A, delo 85, Hermitage Archives, Saint Petersburg,1773-1785: 1:no.124.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1932

  • Art Treasures, Christie's, London, 1932, no. 1367.

  • Rembrandt Tentoonstelling, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 1932, no. 5.

1933

  • Loan Exhibition of Paintings by Rembrandt, M. Knoedler & Co., New York, 1933, no. 3.

1935

  • A Collection of Old Masters, The Wilmington Society of the Fine Arts, Delaware, 1935, no. 9.

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. 1, repro.

1988

  • A Question of Rembrandt, Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, 1988, no catalogue.

1996

  • Obras Maestras de la National Gallery of Art de Washington, Museo Nacional de Antropología, Mexico City, 1996-1997, unnumbered catalogue, color repro.

2002

  • Rembrandt Rembrandt, Kyoto National Museum; Städelsches Kunstinstitut Frankfurt am Main, 2002-2003, no. 20, repro.

2003

  • Loan for display with permanent collection, Städelsches Kunstinstitut und Städtische Galerie, Frankfurt am Main, 2003-2004.

2004

  • Rembrandt: L'homme en costume Oriental, Un prêt exceptionnel de la National Gallery de Washington, Musée départemental d'art ancien et contemporain, Épinal, 2004-2005, no catalogue.

Bibliography

1757

  • Oesterreich, Matthias. Description de Quelques Tableaux de Différens Maîtres. Berlin, 1757: no. 33.

1766

  • Catalogue d'une très-belle Collection de Tableaux, de différens Maîtres Italiens, Flamands, Allemands et François, laquelle se trouve dans la maison de Mr. Ernest Gotzkowsky. Berlin, 1766: no. 146.

1773

  • Imperial Hermitage Museum [probably Ernst von Münnich, ed.] "Catalogue raisonné des tableaux qui se trouvent dans les Galeries, Sallons et Cabinets du Palais Impérial de S. Pétersbourg, commencé en 1773 et continué jusqu’en 1785.” 3 vols. Manuscript, Fund 1, Opis’ VI-A, delo 85, Hermitage Archives, Saint Petersburg,1773-1783 (vols. 1-2), 1785 (vol. 3).

1774

  • Imperial Hermitage Museum [probably Ernst von Münnich, ed.]. Catalogue des tableaux qui se trouvent dans les Cabinets du Palais Impérial à Saint-Pétersbourg. Based on the 1773 manuscript catalogue. Saint Petersburg, 1774: no. 124, as Portrait d'un homme coeffé à la Turque.

1829

  • Smith, John. A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch, Flemish and French Painters. 9 vols. London, 1829-1842: 7(1836):140, no. 413.

1838

  • Imperial Hermitage Museum. Livret de la Galérie Impériale de l'Ermitage de Saint Petersbourg. Saint Petersburg, 1838: 121, no. 4.

1863

  • Köhne, Baron Bernhard de. Ermitage Impérial: Catalogue de la Galérie des Tableaux. Saint Petersburg, 1863: 169, no. 813.

1870

  • Köhne, Baron Bernhard de. Ermitage Impérial: Catalogue de la Galérie des Tableaux. 3 vols. 2nd ed. Saint Petersburg, 1870: 2:138, no. 813.

1877

  • Vosmaer, Carel. Rembrandt Harmens van Rijn: sa vie et ses oeuvres. 2nd ed. The Hague, 1877: 579.

1883

  • Bode, Wilhelm von. Studien zur Geschichte der holländischen Malerei. Braunschweig, 1883: 601, no. 337.

1885

  • Dutuit, Eugène. Tableaux et dessins de Rembrandt: catalogue historique et descriptif; supplément à l'Oeuvre complet de Rembrandt. Paris, 1885: 38, 64, 67, no. 384.

1886

  • Wurzbach, Alfred von. Rembrandtgalerie. Stuttgart, 1886: 87, no. 403.

1893

  • Michel, Émile. Rembrandt: Sa vie, son oeuvre et son temps. Paris, 1893: 567.

1894

  • Michel, Émile. Rembrandt: His Life, His Work, and His Time. 2 vols. Translated by Florence Simmonds. New York, 1894: 2:246.

1895

  • Somov, Andrei Ivanovich. Ermitage Impérial: Catalogue de la Galérie des Tableaux. 2 vols. 3rd ed. Saint Petersburg, 1895: 2:286-287, no. 813.

1897

  • Bode, Wilhelm von, and Cornelis Hofstede de Groot. The Complete Work of Rembrandt. 8 vols. Translated by Florence Simmonds. Paris, 1897-1906: 2:intro., 172, 246, no. 146, repro.

1899

  • Bell, Malcolm. Rembrandt van Rijn and His Work. London, 1899: 70, 179.

1901

  • Somov, Andrei Ivanovich. Ermitage Impérial. Catalogue de la Galérie des Tableaux. 2 vols. 4th ed. Saint Petersburg, 1901: 2:322-323, no. 813.

1904

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. Rembrandt: des Meisters Gemälde. Klassiker der Kunst in Gesamtausgaben 2. Stuttgart, 1904: 64, 269, repro.

1906

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. Rembrandt, des Meisters Gemälde. Klassiker der Kunst in Gesamtausgaben 2. 2nd ed. Stuttgart, 1906: 84, repro. 395, 426, as ein Türke.

  • Wurzbach, Alfred von. Niederlandisches Kunstler-Lexikon. 3 vols. Vienna, 1906-1911: 2(1910):409.

1907

  • Hofstede de Groot, Cornelis. A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century. 8 vols. Translated by Edward G. Hawke. London, 1907-1927: 6(1916):200, no. 351.

  • Bell, Malcolm. Rembrandt van Rijn. The great masters in painting and sculpture. London, 1907: 65, 150.

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. The Work of Rembrandt, reproduced in over five hundred illustrations. Classics in Art 2. New York, 1907: 84, repro.

1908

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. Rembrandt, des Meisters Gemälde. Klassiker der Kunst in Gesamtausgaben 2. 3rd ed. Stuttgart and Berlin, 1908: repro. 121, 553.

1909

  • Wrangell, Baron Nicolas. Les Chefs-d’Oeuvre de la Galérie de Tableaux de l’Ermitage Impérial à St. Pétersbourg. London, 1909: xxix, 100, repro.

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. Rembrandt: Des Meisters Gemälde. Edited by Wilhelm R. Valentiner. Klassiker der Kunst in Gesamtausgaben 2. Stuttgart and Leipzig, 1909: repro. 121, 553.

1913

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. The Work of Rembrandt, reproduced in over five hundred illustrations. Classics in Art 2. 2nd ed. New York, 1913: repro. 121.

1921

  • Rosenberg, Adolf. The Work of Rembrandt. Edited by Wilhelm R. Valentiner. Classics in Art 2. 3rd ed. New York, 1921: 84,121, repro.

1923

  • Weiner, Peter Paul von. Meisterwerke der Gemäldesammlung in der Eremitage zu Petrograd. Revised ed. Munich, 1923: repro.

  • Meldrum, David S. Rembrandt’s Painting, with an Essay on His Life and Work. New York, 1923: 191, pl. 140.

  • Weiner, Pierre Paul von. Les chefs-d'oeuvre de la Galerie de tableaux de L'Ermitage à Petrograd. Les Chefs-d'Oeuvres des Galeries Principaux de L'Europe 8. Revised ed. Munich, 1923: repro.

1932

  • "The Art Treasures Exhibition at Messrs. Christie, Manson & Woods." _Apollo _ 16 (1 October 1932): repro. 182, 183.

  • "The Art Treasures Exhibition II." Country Life 72 (15 October 1932): 447, repro.

  • Roe, F. Gordona, and Charles R. Beaurd. "B.A.D.A. Art Treasures." The Connoisseur 90 (October 1932): 244.

  • Schmidt-Degener, Frederik. Rembrandt tentoonstelling: Ter plechtige herdenking van het 300-jarig bestaan der Universiteit van Amsterdam. Amsterdam, 1932: no. 5.

1933

  • M. Knoedler & Co. Loan exhibition of paintings by Rembrandt. Exh. cat. M. Knoedler & Co., New York, 1933: no. 3.

1935

  • Bredius, Abraham. Rembrandt Schilderijen, 630 Afbeeldingen. Utrecht, 1935: no. 180, repro.

  • Wilmington Society of the Fine Arts. A Collection of Old Masters. Exh. cat. Wilmington Society of the Fine Arts. Wilmington, 1935: no. 9.

  • Bredius, Abraham. Rembrandt Gemälde, 630 Abbildungen. Vienna, 1935: no. 180, repro.

1936

  • Bredius, Abraham. The Paintings of Rembrandt. New York, 1936: no. 180, repro.

1941

  • National Gallery of Art. Preliminary Catalogue of Paintings and Sculpture. Washington, 1941: 166-167, no. 499, as A Turk.

1942

  • Book of Illustrations. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942: 249, repro. 31.

  • Bredius, Abraham. The Paintings of Rembrandt. 2 vols. Translated by John Byam Shaw. Oxford, 1942: 1:11, no. 180, repro.

1943

  • Benesch, Otto. "The Rembrandt Paintings in the National Gallery of Art." The Art Quarterly 6, no. 1 (Winter 1943): 20 fig. 2, 22, 25.

1949

  • National Gallery of Art. Paintings and Sculpture from the Mellon Collection. Washington, 1949 (reprinted 1953 and 1958): 81, repro.

1957

  • Benesch, Otto. Rembrandt. New York, 1957: 44.

1963

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. New York, 1963 (reprinted 1964 in French, German, and Spanish): 312, repro.

1965

  • National Gallery of Art. Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. Washington, 1965: 110.

1966

  • Bauch, Kurt. Rembrandt Gemälde. Berlin, 1966: 10, no. 170, repro.

1968

  • Gerson, Horst. Rembrandt Paintings. Amsterdam, 1968: 56, 296, 495, no. 182, repro.

  • National Gallery of Art. European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. Washington, 1968: 96, repro.

1969

  • Bredius, Abraham. Rembrandt: The Complete Edition of the Paintings. Revised by Horst Gerson. 3rd ed. London, 1969: repro. 153, 563, no. 180.

  • National Gallery of Art. Rembrandt in the National Gallery of Art: Commemorating the tercentenary of the artist's death. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1969: 7, 11, no. 1, repro.

1975

  • National Gallery of Art. European paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. Washington, 1975: 286, repro.

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. New York, 1975: 273, no. 363, color repro.

1977

  • Bolten, J., and H. Bolten-Rempt. The Hidden Rembrandt. Translated by Danielle Adkinson. Milan and Chicago, 1977: 181, no. 176, repro.

1980

  • Blankert, Albert, et al. Gods, Saints, and Heroes: Dutch Painting in the Age of Rembrandt. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington; Detroit Institute of Arts; Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Washington, 1980: 137-141.

1984

  • Schwartz, Gary. Rembrandt: Zijn leven, zijn schilderijen. Maarssen, 1984: 200, no. 218, repro.

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 273, no. 357, color repro., as A Turk by Rembrandt van Ryn.

1985

  • National Gallery of Art. European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. Washington, 1985: 331, repro.

  • Schwartz, Gary. Rembrandt: His Life, His Paintings. New York, 1985: 200, no. 218, repro.

  • Bartoschek, Gerd. Flämische Barockmalerei in der Bildergalerie von Sanssouci. 3rd ed. Potsdam, 1985: 79-80.

1986

  • Sutton, Peter C. A Guide to Dutch Art in America. Washington and Grand Rapids, 1986: 312.

  • Tümpel, Christian. Rembrandt. Translated by Jacques and Jean Duvernet, Léon Karlson, and Patrick Grilli. Paris, 1986: repro. 195, 423, no. A38.

  • Guillaud, Jacqueline, and Maurice Guillaud. Rembrandt: das Bild des Menschen. Translated by Renate Renner. Stuttgart, 1986: 306, no. 362, 307, repro.

  • Stichting Foundation Rembrandt Research Project. A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings. Vol. 2: 1631-1634. Edited by Josua Bruyn et al. Dordrecht, Boston, and Lancaster, 1986: 27, 43, 581-588, repros.

  • Guillaud, Jacqueline, and Maurice Guillaud. Rembrandt, the human form and spirit. Translated by Suzanne Boorsch et al. New York, 1986: no. 362, repro..

1988

  • Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. "The Art Historian in the Laboratory: Examinations into the History, Preservation, and Techniques of 17th Century Dutch Painting." In The Age of Rembrandt : studies in seventeenth-century Dutch painting. Papers in art history from the Pennsylvania State University 3. Edited by Roland E. Fleischer and Susan Scott Munshower. University Park, PA, 1988: 219; 233, fig. 9-16; 234, fig. 9-17, UV-photo; 235, fig. 9-18, detail infrared photo.

1991

  • Kopper, Philip. America's National Gallery of Art: A Gift to the Nation. New York, 1991: 94, color repro.

1995

  • Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, 1995: 215-221, color repro. 217.

1996

  • Ortiz Hernán, Elena, and Octavio Hernández R. Obras maestras de la National Gallery of Art. Translated by Bertha Ruiz de la Concha. Exh. cat. Museo Nacional de Antropología, Mexico City, 1996: 82-83, color repro.

1997

  • Fleischer, Roland E., and Susan C. Scot, eds. Rembrandt, Rubens, and the art of their time: recent perspectives. Papers in art history from the Pennsylvania State University 11. University Park, PA, 1997: 17-19, 31, 36, 38, nos. 1-13, 2-1, repro.

1999

  • Vogel, Carol. "Finding Fashion and History on th Edges: Museums Look Again at Their Picture Frames." New York Times (September 2, 1999): C1.

2000

  • Kirsh, Andrea, and Rustin S. Levenson. Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies. Materials and Meaning in the Fine Arts 1. New Haven, 2000: 265.

  • Il'in, Nikolas, and Natalia Semënova. Prodannye sokrovishcha Rossii [Sold Treasures of Russia]. Moscow, 2000: 116-117, color repro.

  • Wright, Christopher. Rembrandt. Collection Les Phares 10. Translated by Paul Alexandre. Paris, 2000: 250, no. 247, fig. 247.

2002

  • Frank, Christoph. "Die Gemäldesammlungen Gotzkowsky, Eimbke und Stein: Zur Berliner Sammlungsgeschichte während des Siebenjährigen Krieges." in Kunstsammeln und Geschmack im 18. Jahrhundert. Edited by Michael North. Aufklärung und Europa 8. Berlin, 2002: 117-194.

2003

  • Giltaij, Jeroen. Rembrandt Rembrandt. Exh. cat. National Museum, Kyoto; Städelsches Kunstinstitut und Städtische Galerie, Frankfurt am Main. Wolfrathausen, 2003: 104-107, no. 20, color repro.

  • Frank, Christoph. "Un ours, un suicide et quelques tableaux. Le rôle de Berlin dans la constitution des collections rembranesques en Russie, à l'époque de Catherine II." in Rembrandt et son école: Collections du musée de l'Ermitage de Saint-Pétersbourg. Edited by Irina Sokolova, and Emmanuel Starcky. Exh. cat. Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon. Paris, 2003: 51-63.

2006

  • Bahre, Kristin. Rembrandt: Genie auf der Suche. Exh. cat. Museum Het Rembrandthuis, Amsterdam; Gemäldegalerie Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Cologne, 2006: 136, fig. 9.

  • Wheelock, Arthur K., Jr. "A Museum Curator’s Perspective." IFAR Journal: International Foundation of Art Research 8, no. 3-4 (2006): 95, figs. 1A-1B.

2009

  • Odom, Anne, and Wendy R. Salmond, eds. Treasures into Tractors: The Selling of Russia's Cultural Heritage, 1918-1938. Washington, D.C., 2009: 135 n. 62.

2013

  • Semyonova, Natalya, and Nicolas V. Iljine, eds. Selling Russia's Treasures: The Soviet Trade in Nationalized Art 1917-1938. New York and London, 2013: 138, 139, 142, repro.

2016

  • Wecker, Menachem. "Famed Arts Patron Catherine the Great had Many Lovers, But She was a Prude." Washington Post 139, no. 120 (April 3, 2016): E2, repro.

  • Jaques, Susan. The Empress of Art: Catherine the Great and the Transformation of Russia. New York, 2016: 397, 398.

Inscriptions

center left: [R]embrandt ft

Wikidata ID

Q20177141


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