£2,800
Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (1606-1669) - The Artist's Mother, head-and-bust length, three-quarters right, signed with monogram: RHL [Rembrandt Harmensz Leydensis] and dated 1628 (2 transposed) within the plate, second state, etching and burin drypoint, on laid paper without watermark, sheet 7.1 x 6.9cm, plate mark 6.6 x 6.3cm, [B. 354; Hind 1; New Hollstein 5 ii/iv]
Provenance: 1) Faint collector's stamp to verso, early-mid 19th c; almost certainly E.F. within an circle and if so, Eduard Faesch (1812-1845), a Kiel merchant and art collector (L.846). His stamp is noted 'found not only on prints, but also on good drawings (e.g. by Rembrandt)', as many international institutions' collections demonstrate. 2) Contemporaneous and later pencil manuscript inscriptions, to verso of sheet and mounting.
Roelof van Straten states this early etching by Rembrandt is one of the first to be signed by the artist with his RHL monogram. The backward "2" is indicative of Rembrandt's incomplete control of the plate's reversal during the printing process. 'The subtlety of modelling and the extensive vocabulary of descriptive strokes suggest an unexpected level of graphic sophistication for an etching of such an early date. [...] The Fact that Rembrandt signed and dated this etching indicates that although he may have initially undertaken the project as an exercise, he ultimately decided to market it. [...] [A] print that shows [...] technical mastery or subtlety of stroke' (Rosenberg, Rembrandt's Religious Prints, 2017, p. 438-39).
Please see online images. A clean and even impression. Each corner with blemishes of varying degrees, presumably from former mounting, and now, in places, affecting the image within the plate mark. When examined on a lightbox, the lower-left corner margin appears thinned, but is OK and structurally sound; also, the sheet shows browned portions not generally visible in natural light. The indistinct collector's stamp could be a result of being washed. Currently hinge-mounted to a sheet of annotated card.
Fees apply to the hammer price:
Room and Absentee Bids:
28.80% inc VAT*
Online and Autobids:
30.6% inc VAT*
