The copperplate was not in any of the early auctions or collections and is almost certainly not in existence anymore.

There has been much speculation about the identity of the mill. In Valerius Röver’s inventory list of 1731 it was described as Catwijck op Rhyn, de geboorteplaats van Rembrandt. Later it was assumed to be the mill owned by Rembrandts grandfather in Leiden, near Ossenbrugge (Noordwijk), based on an inscription on an impression in the Rembrandthuis: den Wyntmolen van den pester van Ossenbruggen. But a drawing of that mill, probably by Huygens, differs in too many details from the one in the etching.
The most likely identification is that of Lugt, dating back to 1915, as De Passeerder, later called De Osdorp, a mill that stood on a bulwark near the Lauriersgracht in Amsterdam. The mill is also known as the Kleine Stinkmolen (Little Stink Mill).

The mill we see here is a Bovenkruier. It literally means that the top of the mill can be turned separately from the building itself. The triangular construction is meant to make that movement possible. The long beam with the rope is called a vang. It is used to slow down and stop the wings by clamping the central rod. By moving the main subject, the mill, to the left side of the sheet, Rembrandt adds to the effect of depth. The virtual, diagonal line running from the top left to field at right strengthens the perspective even more. For the ‘grainy’ effect in the sky, see B232.

There used to be a drawing of a mill in the Kunsthalle in Bremen (Benesch 810) which showed the Passeerder mill from the other side. Lugt based his identification on this drawing. There are other drawings of mills, like one in oiled charcoal of the flourmill De Bok at the bastion Blauwhoofd in Amsterdam (Benesch 813, now in the Boijmans van Beuningen) and one in pen and brush of the same mill (Benesch 1332, Fondation Custodia, Paris).
An etching showing a mill made in 1617 by Jan van de Velde, as part of a series about the four seasons (Aetas = Summer), may have served as an example for Rembrandt. He used several other prints by Van de Velde as inspiration. In 1645 Rembrandt made a painting of a mill (now in the National Gallery in Washington) for which the attribution has long been doubted, but is now considered to be authentic (see Vogelaar 2006).

NH lists nine copies, of which five in the same direction. Copy C is by Richard Byron (his nr 6, 143 x 200 mm, WB 2). Copy D is by Costantino Cumano, inscribed Rt inv. (149 x 208 mm, WB 4). Copy F is by John Burnet (145 x 206 mm, WB 3). Copy G is by Lucy Brightwell (157 x 213 mm, WB 1). Copy H is anonymous, inscribed Rembrandt f 1641 (144 x 205 mm).
There are four copies in reverse. Copy A is by Francis Vivares (1758, 146 x 208 mm, WB 5). Copy B is by John Smith of Chichester (147 x 207 mm, WB 6). Copy E is by Alexander Croke signed A Croke 1817 (144 x 201 mm). Copy I is by Vilhelm Blomquist (99 x 118 mm).

The etching is considered as special by Seidlitz, Coppier, Rovinsky, De Claussin, Wilson and Blanc.

All authors list one state only

There are counterproofs in the British Museum and in the Bibliothèque Nationale. There are no impressions in the Recueils. An impression in the collection Helmantel (Museum de Weem, Westereemden) has a price of 12 stuivers inscribed verso. It may be the original selling price.

Strasbourg bend (1646); Strasbourg lily with LC (c. 1641); Foolscap with five-pointed collar with cm LB (c. 1650); Countermarks FC and PC; Strasbourg lily. A total of six editions.

H 179, BB 41-C, G 225, M 305, Mz 145, RA 623, Cl 230, W 230, Bl 333, Du 230, CD 152
Lugt 1915 p. 77; Wandelingen 1998, p. 191-195; Vogelaar 2006, p. 74-91; Hinterding 2006, p. 308; Hinterding 2008, p. 436-439; Zeist 2012, p. 30-31; Dat kan beter! 2013, p. 30-31;

NHD/WB: only state.
A very good, early impression with burr in the lower left side of the plate, craquelure lines and sulphur tinting in the sky.
Sheet 145/143 x 206/207 mm, cut at the platemark (-1%).
Watermark: Strasbourg Lily in a crowned shield, countermarks LC to be dated ca. 1641 (Hinterding 2006). Horizontal chain lines.

In a private collection (Germany?);

Rembrandt in Zwart-Wit, Westfries Museum (Hoorn), Het Markiezenhof (Bergen op Zoom), Stedelijk Museum Zutphen, Het Hannemahuis (Harlingen), Museum Gouda, Jan ten Horne Museum (Weert), Stadsmuseum Harderwijk, March 2013-August 2015; Stedelijk Museum Vianen, October 2017 – January 2018;
Rembrandt in Black & White, Schloß Britz (Berlin), Bozar Expo (Brussels), Chateau des Penthes (Geneva), November 2015 – October 2016;
Rembrandt: Paysages, Fonds Glenat (Couvent Ste.Cecile – Grenoble), February – June 2023;
Rembrandt, 17^th century photographer, Daegu Art Museum (Korea), November 2023 – March 2024;
Rembrandt, de fotograaf, Westfries Museum (Hoorn), June 2024 – January 2025;