Man in a coat and fur cap leaning against a bank
Allegorical subjects, Catalogue #21, Rembrandt in black & white
Aged man of letters (St.Paul in meditation)
There has been some debate about the identity of the sitter. Middleton and Blanc suggested St.Jerome, but all references to him (the lion, the skull, the crucifix) are missing. Since a preliminary drawing of 1629 clearly shows a sword, it is now generally assumed to be St.Paul. According to van Straten this may well be the second etching ever made by Rembrandt.
Beggar with his left hand extended
Around 1630 Rembrandt etched a series of beggars. It is generally assumed that he was inspired by a series of beggars made by Callot in 1622. He copied the long parallel lines Callot used to indicate shadows. In turn, Rembrandt’s work has inspired many others, like Quast, Savery, van Vliet, van Schendel and Bloemaert, to produce series of beggars and other ‘street types’.
Allegorical subjects, Catalogue #21, Rembrandt in black & white
Student at a table by candle light
Despite the fact that several authors, starting with Blanc, noticed that the face of the ‘student’ looks suspiciously similar to that of Rembrandt himself, neither the subject, nor the scenery are the most debated aspects of this etching, The real debate is about a very deceptive copy included in a 17th century book on the Bible by Schabaelje Many authors assumed this to be a new state of the original. Some authors even described up to eight new states. Finally, in 1935, O.H.Barnard made clear how the Rembrandt original could be recognized by some saw traces in the left margin and by ‘little balls’ under the candlestick. The copy can also be identified with the lower outline of the chin which is exactly equidistant from the top and lower margins, whereas in the original the chin is 2 mm above the centreline.
Allegorical subjects, Catalogue #21, Rembrandt in black & white
Old man in meditation, leaning on a book
Allegorical subjects, Catalogue #21, Rembrandt in black & white
Canal with an angler and two swans
This is one of the five prints in which Rembrandt combines a flat, typically Dutch countryside with mountains in the background. Gersaint considered this plate and the next one (B236) as being one plate. However, the perspectives of both prints are clearly different, so his assumption was probably incorrect.
Canal with a large boat and bridge
This etching was named Het Schuytje op de Voorgrondt (The boat in the foreground) in Valerius Rover’s catalogue of 1731. It may have been part of a larger work, since it fits very well to the right of Canal with an angler and two swans (B235). It could well be, as suggested by several authors, that both etchings were originally made on one plate. Although part of the scenery (the boat moored in the reeds of the riverbank) looks distinctly Dutch, the hilly background and Romanesque church can certainly not be found in Holland. This combination of local and foreign landscapes is seen regularly in Rembrandts works. It indicates that he has probably not worked from life.
The bull (‘Het stiertje’)
This very rare etching shows a bull tied with a rope, with foliage in the background.
Panorama near Bloemendaal (The goldweigher’s field)
In Valerius Röver’s inventory of 1731 the house was identified as that of Jan Uyttenbogaert, the Receiver General, tax collector and gold merchant (thus the name of the print), who was portrayed by Rembrandt in an etching (B281) ten years earlier. Subsequent authors have copied this title, until first Lugt and later Van Regteren Altena identified the view as taken from Het Kopje, a well-known hill in Bloemendaal near Haarlem. The town on the left is Haarlem, identifiable by the tower of the St.Bavo. On the right the church of Bloemendaal is visible. The house with a spire topping a square tower is Saxenburg, at that time belonging to Christoffel Thijsz., the man from which Rembrandt bought the house in the Breestraat. Rembrandt never fully paid his debt for this house, so this print can be a commission from Thijszn, or a gift or a partial payment in natura. It is the only landscape not showing the surroundings of Amsterdam.
The bridge at Klein Kostverloren (Six bruggetje)
The title of this etching may well be inspired by an old anecdote, described by Gersaint, that this etching was made on the estate of Jan Six at a wager that Rembrandt could not complete the picture before a servant would return from a neighbouring village to fetch some mustard. The title is further supported by an inscription on an impression (in the Rembrandthuis) which reads den heer Six en Brugh (Mr Six and bridge). However, in 1915 Lugt identified the tower as that of Ouderkerk a/d Amstel and the location as the estate Klein Kostverloren, which belonged to Albert Coenraadszn Burgh, then burgomaster of Amsterdam. Since the estate of Six was in Hillegom, it is unlikely that the picture was made there. Given the very precise and minute lines that Rembrandt etched here, it is also unlikely that the plate was made in the open air instead of in his studio. The plate has always been a very popular one, as can be seen from the many copies made of it.
Lieven Willemszn van Coppenol, writing master: the smaller plate
Coppenol (1598- after 1667) was initially headmaster at the French school in Amsterdam. He later ran a school at the Singel and was an important calligrapher, who travelled through the country to show his art. The portrait was probably commissioned by Coppenol himself, since he had done so before with other artists and even sculptors (Quellinus). The date has been assumed by Wijnman based on the age of the boy, who supposedly is Coppenol’s grandson Antonius, who is described in a contemporary text by Waterloos.
Jan Six
We will never know what the exact relationship was between Rembrandt and Jan Six, who was twenty-nine years old when this etching was made. It may well be that they were close friends, despite the difference in age of twelve years. It may explain why the setting seems to be the private quarters of Six, not his office or some other formal location. The way the sitter is portrayed here was unique at the time. It is as if Six was caught by surprise, hardly realising that someone was drawing him. The many artefacts surrounding him, all related to some aspect of Six’s daily routine, make this etching almost a genre-piece rather than a portrait. The fact that Six is reading a book indicates that he owned a library, one of the ‘noble’ things to do according to Castiglione’s *Book of the Nobleman*. As he did in several of his paintings, Rembrandt uses the light reflecting from the book Six is holding in his hand to illuminate his face. A few years later Rembrandt made an etching (B 112) as a frontispiece for *Medea*, a play written by Six (1648) and a painted portrait in 1654 (Bredius 276, in the *Six Collection*, Amsterdam) He also made two drawings for an *Album Amicorum* in 1652.
Arnold Tholinx, Inspector
Tholinx was the brother-in-law of Jan Six, who in turn was married to a daughter of Nicolaas Tulp, the fysician for whom Rembrandt painted his first Anatomic Lesson in 1632 (A51, Bredius 403, *Mauritshuis*). Tholinx was Inspector of the Collegium Medicum. He was succeeded by Johan Deyman, for whom Rembrandt painted his second Anatomic Lesson in 1656 (Bredius 414, *Rijksmuseum*). As he did in several of his paintings, Rembrandt uses the light reflecting from the book in front of Tholinx to illuminate his face. In the 1st state this reflection is overdone, it is corrected in the 2nd state.
Jan Uytenbogaert, ‘The goldweigher’
At the time this etching was made Uytenbogaert had just become the *Ontvanger der Gemeenelandsmiddelen over de stad en ‘t kwartier Amsterdam* (Receiver of Amsterdam and surrounding area), a position he would hold for 42 years. He was a cousin and godson of the Remonstrant preacher Johannes Uytenbogaert of which Rembrandt made both a painting (in the *Rijksmuseum*) and an etching (B 279). It is unknown whether Rembrandt made this etching on commission or as a token of friendship and appreciation for the sitter. The latter is more likely since Rembrandt must have known Jan Uytenbogaert from his period in Leiden. They could have been befriended, since Rembrandt mentions Uytenbogaert several times in his letters to the Stadhouder, asking for payment for the two paintings he made in the same year.
Ephraim Bonus, Jewish physician
Ephraim Hezekiah Bonus (or Bueno) was a well-known Jewish doctor and writer, born in Portugal in 1599. He moved to Amsterdam in 1624 and supported the publications by Menasseh Ben Israel, which is probably the link to Rembrandt. At about the same time as this portrait was made, Jan Lievens also made an etched portrait (Bartsch 56) of Bonus. A comparison shows that Lievens portrait is rather formal and strict whereas Rembrandt uses a more unusual position. He seems to have caught the doctor in a moment of reflection. Rudi Fuchs considers Rembrandt’s version as showing a real Jewish person, whereas the Lievens version is a standard portrait.
Jan Uytenbogaert, preacher of the Remonstrants
Uytenbogaert (1577-1644 The Hague) studied with Arminius in Geneva and became a preacher in Utrecht in 1584. He was one of the most important leaders of the Remonstrants, not least because he was first army chaplain to Prince Maurits and later tutor to the young Frederick Henry, the Prince of Orange. He payed an important role in writing and presenting the *Remonstratie* to the States-General in 1610 (**in the collection ‘Rembrandt in B&W’, number 524**). This document started a long-lasting dispute in the Lutheran church. During the Synod of Dordrecht in 1618-19 the orthodox Contra-Remonstrants (also called *preciezen* or *Gomaristen* after their leader Franciscus Gomarus) won a long-lasting dispute over the Remonstrants (also called *rekkelijken* or *Arminianen*, after their leader Jacobus Arminius). Gomarus and Arminius were both living in Leyden. On 24 May 1619, eleven days after the execution of the Arminian Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, Uytenbogaert was banned. He fled to Antwerp and then to Rouen, where he stayed in exile. After the death of the Gomarist Prince Maurits in 1625, he returned to Holland. First in hiding in Rotterdam and then to The Hague. He regularly visited Amsterdam where he was a preacher at the Remonstrant Church. But he never regained his former influence.
Jan Asselyn, painter (‘Krabbetje’)
Jan Asselyn was a painter of landscapes (ca. 1615-1652). He returned from Rome in 1647. He married the sister of Rembrandt´s pupil Ferdinand Bol and became a citizen of Amsterdam just a few months before his death in 1652. He was quite small and had a deformed left hand, which led to his nickname *Krabbetje* (little crab). The books on the left side are pointing at Asselyn’s affection for reading. The painting on the easel in the 1st state shows the specialty of the sitter, landscapes.
Jan Cornelis Sylvius, Preacher
Sylvius was a well-respected preacher in Amsterdam. He was a friend of Rembrandt and related by his marriage to Aeltje Uylenburgh, a niece of Saskia. When Rembrandt expressed his intention to marry with Saskia on 10 June 1636, it was Sylvius who represented the bride at the registrar. Rembrandt made various drawings and two etchings of Sylvius. This (second) portrait of Sylvius was made about eight years after his death in 1638. The text under the picture is by Caspar van Baerle (1584-1648), also known as Barlaeus. It is the only portrait which has both a description of the sitter surrounding the oval and a poem at the bottom. It was clearly meant as a tribute to this eminent person. Thirteen years earlier Rembrandt made an etching of Sylvius from life (B266).
Menasseh ben Israel
Samuel Menasseh ben Israel was a Rabbi of the Portuguese synagogue in Amsterdam. He lived near Rembrandt in the Breestraat and was probably a friend patron of Rembrandt. He commissioned four etched illustrations for his book *La Piedra Gloriosa* (see B36). Apart from being a rabbi, Ben Israel was a publisher and served as a diplomat. He died in 1657 at Middelburg, returning from a mission to Cromwell in England. Recently the identification as Ben Israel, introduced separately by both Gersaint in 1751 and de Burgy in 1755, has been doubted. Suggested alternatives are Rabbi Saul Levi Morteira (by Dubiez in 1992), Nicolaes de Rye (by Roscam Abbing in 1999) and Samuel Smijters (by Dickey in 2004). So far, their arguments have not convinced others.
Jan Cornelis Sylvius
Johannes Sylvius (1564-1638) was a preacher, first in Sloten (1604) and since 1621 in the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam. He was friend and family of Rembrandt by his marriage to a niece of Saskia, Aeltje Uylenburgh. In 1632 Rembrandt made a painting of Aeltje at the age of 62 (Bredius 333, collection Rose-Marie and Eijk de Mol van Otterloo, Boston). At the ondertrouw, a pre-wedding ceremony, on 10 June 1634 in the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam, it was Sylvius who represented the bride. He also baptized the first two of Rembrandt’s children, Rombartus in 1635 and Cornelia in 1638.