Christ Crucified between the Two Thieves (The Three Crosses)

1653

Rembrandt van Rijn

Associated Names
Rembrandt van Rijn

Artist, Dutch, 1606 - 1669

The image shows a crucifixion scene with a central figure on a cross, surrounded by various figures on the ground including some on horses, with a crowd gathered around. The drawing is in the style of Rembrandt, featuring intense light and shadow to emphasize the central figure and create depth. Lines radiate from the center, suggesting movement and drama within the composition. Dark, shaded areas surround the central scene, focusing the viewer's attention on the highlighted figures and significant activity occurring around them.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    drypoint on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    sheet (trimmed to plate mark): 39 x 45.5 cm (15 3/8 x 17 15/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.7174

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    White/Boon 1969, no. 78, State iv/v

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

William Esdaile [1758-1837], London (Lugt 2617); (his sale, Christie & Manson, London, 11-16 June 1840, lot 688). unidentified collector (Lugt 144), previously identified as Alfred Morrison [1821-1897], London. Edward Cheney [1803-1884], London; (his sale, Sotheby, Wilkinson, & Hodge, London, 4 May 1885, lot 687). Earl Stetson Crawford [1877-1966], Pasadena; purchased 1936 by Lessing J. Rosenwald [1891-1979], Jenkintown, PA (Lugt 1760); given to the NGA, 1943.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

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.

1961

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

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

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. 49b, 52-53, repro.

  • Rembrandt: Experimental Etcher, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and Pierpont Morgan Library, New York, NY, 1969-1970, no. 59, repro.

1973

  • Etchings by Rembrandt, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1973, no cat.

1982

  • Lessing J. Rosenwald: Tribute to a Collector, NGA, 1982, no. 83, repro.

1992

  • Lessing Rosenwald: An Exemplary Collector, Kunsthalle Bremen, Germany, 1992.

2001

  • The Unfinished Print, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2001, as The Three Crosses, repro.

2004

  • The Unfinished Print, The Frick Collection, New York, 2004.

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.

Inscriptions

recto: none; verso: at lower left, in red ink, in later hand: A M (Lugt 144); at lower left, in brown ink, in later hand: 1813 W E (William Esdaile, Lugt 2617) D80 N 17 Imp- From a different plate.; at lower center, in graphite, in later hand: B. 78 Les Trois Croix

Wikidata ID

Q60761193

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