Title: Moses Smashing the Tablets of the Law Artist: Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 168.5 cm x 136.5 cm Date: 1659 Location: Gemäldegalerie, Berlin.
On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, five golden rings...
Five Golden Rings have been interpreted to represent the Pentateuch, or Five Books of Moses (Genesis through Deuteronomy). The King James Version of the Bible introduces Genesis as “the first book of Moses” numbering all the books down to Deuteronomy as the “fifth book of Moses”. There are scholarly hypotheses that indicate Moses himself may not have actually written all five books, but the tradition of Mosaic authorship is still considered when reviewing the work. It does not make the Scripture any less the inspired word of God, for God uses human instruments here on earth to further his kingdom.
Title: The Healing of the Mother-in-Law of Saint Peter Artist: Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn Medium: Pen and brown ink, brown wash, heightened with white. Size: 17.1 x 18.9 cm Date: late 1650s Location: Fondation Custodia, Collection Frits Lugt, Paris.
Mark 1:29–31 – As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James
and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with
a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. So he went to her, took her
hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.
When making sketches to serve as models for his
students, Rembrandt often focused on a story's protagonists — in this case,
Christ and the convalescent woman — deliberately excluding any additional
figures. Here he also refrains from making any reference to the setting, save
for a few lively strokes to suggest the bed or blanket on which the woman
reclines. Rembrandt's strategic placement of hatched lines and subtle smudging
of ink create bold contrasts in light and shadow, which underscore the drama of
the event.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July 1606 – October 1669) was a Dutch
painter and etcher, generally considered one of the greatest painters and
printmakers in European art history. Throughout his artistic life Rembrandt van
Rijn produced between 300 to 600 paintings, approximately 300 etchings, and
about 1400 drawings. The jury is still out on the exact numbers because in many
cases it is not clear which works were done by Rembrandt himself and which were
painted by his apprentices.
Title: Doubting Thomas Artist: Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn Medium: Oil on panel Size: 53 × 51 cm Date: 1634 Location: Pushkin Museum, Moscow.
John 20:24-31 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Rembrandt depicts the well-known scene somewhat theatrical. By showing his wounds, Jesus takes away Thomas's incredulity. Contrary to most other depictions, Thomas does not stick his hand into the wound. His doubts vanish when he sees the wound, just as John describes it in his gospel. John himself is depicted on the right. He appears to be sleeping, but that should be regarded as having deep inner thoughts.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July 1606 – October 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art history. Born in Leiden into a middle class family, Rembrandt becomes a pupil of the painter Jacob van Swanenburgh. In 1624, he studies in Amsterdam in the studio of Pieter Lastman, who will greatly influence his artistic development. Some say it is Lastman who illustrates to Rembrandt Caravaggio's use of chiaroscuro – the application of light and darkness to suggest depth.
Title: Christ Presented to the People Artist: Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn Medium: Drypoint on paper Size: 39.1 x 45.4 cm Date: 1655 Location: Saint Louis Art Museum, Saint Louis.
John 18:28-40 Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace, because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?” They replied, “If he were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you.” Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” They objected: “But we have no right to execute anyone.” This took place to fulfill what Jesus had said about the kind of death he was going to die. Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus asked, “Is that your own idea, or did others talk to you about me?” Pilate replied, ““Am I a Jew? Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?” Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.” Pilate said, “You are a king, then!” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” Pilate retorted “What is truth?” With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?” They shouted back, “No, not him! Give us Barabbas!” Now Barabbas had taken part in an uprising.
Silhouetted by a dark arch, the three protagonists, Pontius Pilate, Christ, and Barabbas, stand on the podium before a large civic building. Rembrandt captures the moment when Pilate, pointing towards Christ, asks the assembles crowd the question: "What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" They all shout back, "Let Him be crucified!" Surrounded by an extraordinary architectural setting, soldiers, and the surge of the crowd below him, Christ looks helpless and isolated. This is one of Rembrandt's most celebrated prints because of its size, rarity, and complex composition. It is one of the few that Rembrandt did exclusively in drypoint, a process in which a sharp point is used to scratch a line directly into the copperplate.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July 1606 – October 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art history, his work contributing to a period that historians call the Dutch Golden Age. Rembrandt produced etchings for most of his career, from 1626 to 1660, when he was forced to sell his printing-press and virtually abandoned etching. Only the troubled year of 1649 produced no dated work. Despite Rembrandt's financial success as an artist, teacher, and art dealer, his penchant for ostentatious living forced him to declare bankruptcy in 1656.
Title: The Dream of St Joseph Artist: Rembrandt Harmenszoon Van Rijn Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 105 x 83 cm Date: 1655 Location: Museum Of Fine Arts, Budapest, Hungary.
Matthew 2:13: When the Wise Men had left, Joseph had a dream. In the dream an angel of the Lord appeared to him. "Get up!" the angel said. "Take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you to come back. Herod is going to search for the child. He wants to kill him."
Jesus' miraculous escape here should not lead us to overlook the nature of his deliverance (compare, for example, 1 Kings 17:2-6). Jesus and his family survived, but they survived as refugees, abandoning any livelihood Joseph may have had at home as they were undoubtedly traveling lightly. Although travel within Egypt was may have been easy for visitors with means, many Judeans had traditionally regarded refuge in Egypt as a last resort.
Figures or scenes from the New Testament are relatively rare in the works of seventeenth-century Dutch painters. For Rembrandt, however, the Bible was an inexhaustible source of inspiration, providing with him innumerable examples of human joys and sorrows. The Holy family is shown resting in a dim stable; Mary is protected from the cold by a large shawl which she has also folded round the Infant on her lap so that only his tiny face is visible. Joseph, depicted as a clumsy Dutch peasant, is seen awakening from the sleep of exhaustion, dazed by a brilliant apparition which puts a hand on his shoulder as a sign of heavenly comfort, support and encouragement for the weak. The angel is the source of the warm golden light suffusing the whole group.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July, 1606 – October, 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art history, his work contributing to a period that historians call the Dutch Golden Age. In contrast to his successful public career, however, Rembrandt's family life was marked by misfortune. His wife, Saskia, gave birth to four children, but only the last, Titus, survived; her own death came in 1642 at the age of 30. And despite Rembrandt's financial success as an artist, teacher, and art dealer, his penchant for ostentatious living forced him to declare bankruptcy in 1656.
Mark 15:25-27 It was the third hour when they crucified him. The written notice of the charge against him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS. They crucified two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left.
Mark tells us that Jesus was crucified between two bandits. The Greek word translated as “bandits” is commonly used for insurrectionists who fought against Rome. Their presence in the Gospel reminds us that crucifixion was use specifically against people who fought against Roman Imperial rule. Ordinary criminals were not crucified. Jesus was executed as a rebel between two other rebels.
Considered one of Rembrandt's greatest and most dramatic prints, “The Three Crosses” is a work which has all the power of a painting. It shows the deepest point of Christ's suffering; massive beams of light slice through the darkness that the Gospels relate descended on the entire country. The light focuses on Christ, the two bandits who were crucified beside him and the crowd round about. Rembrandt made several versions of this print. This is an impression of the third state.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July 15, 1606 – October 4, 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art history, his work contributing to a period that historians call the Dutch Golden Age. Rembrandt produced etchings for most of his career, from 1626 to 1660, when he was forced to sell his printing-press and virtually abandoned etching. Only the troubled year of 1649 produced no dated work. In the mature works of the 1650s, Rembrandt was more ready to improvise on the plate and large prints typically survive in several states, up to eleven, often radically changed. He used hatching to create his dark areas, which often take up much of the plate.
When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, it is recorded in Luke 2:22-35 that Joseph and Mary took Jesus to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"). Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God.
The child's father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
Jesus' parents are law-abiding Jews. They show up at the temple to perform sacrifices associated with the wife's purification after birth. Such a ceremony occurs forty days after the child's arrival. The Spirit of God directs this scene, because he had revealed to Simeon that death would not come until he had seen the Lord's Christ. Promise, fulfillment and God's direction stand behind the prophecy of this old saint.
In this rendition, Simeon is sincerely happy that he, as an old man who is about to die, may hold the future Messiah in his arms. The Holy Spirit had led Simeon to the temple. The subject must have fascinated Rembrandt, because he made at least two paintings and several drawings about it. This painting focuses entirely on Simeon's emotion and leaves out almost all other figures. There also is no reference to the place of action. The contrast with his great 1631 painting could hardly be stronger. This may very well have been Rembrandt's last painting. It was found unfinished in his workshop the day after he died. The woman in the background was probably added afterwards by someone else. Some think she is Mary, others say she must be the prophetess Anna.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July 15, 1606 – October 4, 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters European art history. He exhibited a complete knowledge of classical iconography, which he molded to fit the requirements of his own experience; thus, the depiction of a biblical scene was informed by Rembrandt's knowledge of the specific text, his assimilation of classical composition, and his observations of Amsterdam's Jewish population.
Title: The Storm on the Sea of Galilee Artist: Rembrandt van Rijn Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 161.7 x 129.8 cm Date: 1633 Location: Missing.
The painting depicts the miracle of Jesus calming the waves on the Sea of Galilee as recorded in the Gospel of Mark, chapter 4:35-41. Having finished teaching to the multitudes on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus told his disciples to sail with him to the other side. En route, a great storm of wind rose, and the waves beat into the boat so strongly that the boat was filling. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion and they woke him saying “Teacher, don’t you care that we are going to perish?”... And Jesus replied “Why are ye fearful? Have ye not yet faith?”
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (July 15, 1606 – October 4, 1669) was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art history, his work contributing to a period that historians call the Dutch Golden Age. Surprisingly, for painter from a seafaring nation, The Storm on the Sea of Galilee is Rembrandt’s only known seascape.
In the early morning hours of March 18, 1990, thieves dressed as Boston police officers entered the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston and stole 13 works of art. The Storm on the Sea of Galilee was among the works of art stolen whose combined value has been estimated as high as $300 million. A reward of $5 million is offered for information leading to the return of the works of art in good condition
