REMBRANDT VAN RIJN (1606-1669) ETCHING AND DRYPOINT TITLED THE FLIGHT INTO EGYPT BY NIGHT, 11IN x 13IN (28cm x 33cm)

Inventory #: 25-1270 - $850.00

Rembrandt Van Rijn (1606-1669) etching and drypoint titled The Flight into Egypt by Night. This is a Rembrandt etching composition, but it is not a lifetime (17th-century) impression by Rembrandt himself, but it is instead a later restrike. The scene shows Joseph leading a donkey carrying Mary and the Christ Child through darkness, illuminated by a lantern. The lantern was one of Rembrandt’s most celebrated uses of chiaroscuro in printmaking. With frame, it measures 11 inches x 13 inches. It is matted and framed under acrylic in a black frame. This piece was acquired from a Metro Washington DC estate. FREE SHIPPING FOR THIS PIECE WITH INSURANCE WITHIN THE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

About the Artist: Rembrandt is revered not only as a painter, but also as a supreme master of etchings. His work in etching spanned most of his career and embraced the wide range of subjects he pursued in his painting: portraits, landscapes, biblical scenes, pictures with allegorical and mythological themes, and more. We know almost nothing about the distribution of Rembrandt's etchings. It seems possible that Rembrandt printed them in his own studio; he may even have been responsible for their distribution. The high standard of the impressions and the frequent reworking of the plates support such an assumption. It seems probable that the majority of Rembrandt's plates were still in his studio during the last years, even though they are not listed in the inventory of 1656. Nevertheless, one cannot exclude the possibility that outside publishers were requited. An etched plate can only produce a certain number of high-quality impressions because the process of printing wears down the etched lines, making them more indistinct with every impression. Approximately one hundred excellent impressions could have been obtained from one of Rembrandt's plates.  However, this number sank drastically if drypoint was used because the burr is much more fragile. From such plates Rembrandt may have acquired 15 to 20 excellent impressions, a number which is consistent with existing examples. The velvet tonality so characteristic of the technique diminishes with impression made over and above this number.