Terms and conditions of use
Sheet of studies with the head of the artist, a beggar man, woman and child
1651
Medium
etching and engraving
Measurements
11.2 × 9.2 cm (plate) 11.5 × 9.6 cm (sheet)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Everard Studley Miller Bequest, 1961
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
In his etchings that look like drawn ‘study sheets’, Rembrandt would have rotated the plate like a sheet of paper to accommodate several unrelated drawings – here including a self-portrait, a beggar and a woman and child. In the etching we can follow the artist observing, thinking and making decisions in the act of sketching. Although Rembrandt did not sell his drawings, he sold etchings that looked like spontaneous sketches, knowing that these would appeal to connoisseurs who were interested in the artistic process.
Artwork Details
Catalogue/s Raisonné
Bartsch 370; Hind 230; White & Boon 370; NHD 261
Edition
only state
Inscription
printed in ink l.r. vertically: RHL 1651
Accession Number
1245-5
Departments
International Prints / International Prints and Drawings
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of the Joe White Bequest
Subjects (general)
Human Figures Portraits
Subjects (specific)
beggars children (people by age group) Rembrandt, Harmensz van Rijn self-portraits studies (visual works) women (female humans)
Movements
Baroque
Watermarks
Watermark Form
Strasbourg lily
The Strasbourg lily watermark shows a shield with a fleur-de-lis surmounted by a crown. There are many variants of the Strasbourg lily motif used by papermakers in Strasbourg, and some variants have also been connected to South-West France from the mid-17th century onward.
Watermark and variant description
Strasbourg lily - variant ZZ. Unidentified reference.
Additional notes
This example includes the monogram 'WR' below the shield and refers to the papermill of Wendelin Richel or Rihel, a printer and papermaker from Strasbourg in the 16th century.
Completeness
partial
Chain Line Interval
23-24 mm
Laid Line Frequency
12 per cm
Placement and spacing of wires
?
Wire Side
verso
Radiograph taken from
verso