The Circumcision: Small Plate

c. 1630

Rembrandt van Rijn

Associated Names
Rembrandt van Rijn

Artist, Dutch, 1606 - 1669

This is a drawing of a group of figures gathered around a glowing central figure. The scene is highly detailed, rendered in intricate line work, depicting a cloaked figure standing with a staff, overseeing a group. The central figure appears illuminated, enveloped in a warm aura. The characters are draped in textured robes, exchanging attentive, solemn gazes. The background features arches, with light appearing to radiate from the central figure, creating depths and shadows around the group. Every detail is carefully etched, conveying a sense of reverence and narrative depth.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching and touches of drypoint

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.7062

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    White/Boon 1969, no. 48, State only

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Duke of Buckingham; Lessing Julius Rosenwald (Lugt 1760b); 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.

1946

  • The Life of Christ as Depicted in the Etchings of Rembrandt, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1946, no cat.

1956

  • The Life of Christ in Prints, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1956-1957, no cat.

1957

  • The Life of Christ in Prints, 14 venue touring exhibition organized by the American Federation of Arts (J.B. Speed Museum, Louisville, KY; Grand Rapids Art Gallery, MI; Time, Inc., New York, NY; Washington County Museum, Hagerstown, MD; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI; Fine Arts Center, Colorado Springs, CO; Newcomb College, New Orleans, LA; Wells College, Aurora, NY; Mississippi Art Association, Jackson, MS; Calgary Allied Arts Centre, Alberta, Canada; Edmonton Art Gallery, Alberta, Canada; Sackville Art Association, New Brunswick, Canada; and Winnipeg Art Gallery, Manitoba, Canada), 1957-1960, no cat.

1961

  • University of Notre Dame Art Gallery, South Bend, IN, 1961.

  • Rembrandt's Etchings, University of Minnesota, 1961-1962.

2006

  • Strokes of Genius: Rembrandt's Prints and Drawings, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

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.

1993

  • The New Hollstein Dutch & Flemish Etchings, Engravings and Woodcuts, 1450-1700. Rotterdam: Sound & Vision Interactive, 1993: no. 55, only.

Wikidata ID

Q65024443

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