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A old bearded man in robes and large tipped cap enters an architectural space on horseback with crowds around him

Light enters from the upper right to illuminate the center of Mordecai who’s on horseback in three-quarter view, led by a bearded man dressed in robes and turban. The background is classic-looking pillars and an arch in center, darkened from the left. Beyond the arch is a suggestion of a temple-like building. The crowd of common people on the right are depicted in various positions of kneeling, leaning over, standing, all looking at Mordecai, they are simply drawn with accurate detail. The crowd on the left, a soldier and fancy-dressed people, are portrayed in more detail and shadow.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
G3227
People
Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Dutch (Leiden 1606 - 1669 Amsterdam)
Title
The Triumph of Mordecai
Classification
Prints
Work Type
print
Date
c. 1641
Culture
Dutch
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/279332

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Etching and drypoint on white antique laid paper
Technique
Etching and drypoint
Dimensions
plate: 17.4 x 21.4 cm (6 7/8 x 8 7/16 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: lower edge, center, in dilute black watercolor, apparently with the tip of a brush: Rembrant
  • watermark: Strasbourg bend or lily [partial, with 4 and VVR [linked] below. It may be a Strasbourg bend. Hinterding v. 2, p. 226, ZZ.zz., unidentified references it. Looking at Hinterding's plates, v. 3, it is most like Strasbourg bend A.a.a. Hinterding, v. 2, p. 377, dates A.a.a. to 1646. None of the various prints that he lists as bearing a.a. or a.b. postdate 1646, and two listed impressions of The Triumph of Mordecai bear a.a. The Straus Center holds a beta-radiograph of this watermark.]
  • collector's mark: verso, purple stamp with graphite numbers within: [Gray collection accession stamp (Lugt 4836)] 3227
  • inscription: verso, various graphite inscriptions: B 40 / B. 40 / l.[?] 932 / 90[underlined]
  • inscription: verso, graphite: E.H.G [Edward Hale Greenleaf, late 19th c. Gray Collection inventory]
  • collector's mark: verso, graphite: AD [or "DA"; script monogram, not in Lugt)]

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Francis Calley Gray, bequest to nephew, 1856.
William Gray, gift to Harvard University, 1857.

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

State
iii/iv
Standard Reference Number
New Hollstein 185, Bartsch 40, Hind 172, Rovinski 40

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of William Gray from the collection of Francis Calley Gray
Object Number
G3227
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
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Publication History

  • Ivan Gaskell, Rembrandt and the Aesthetics of Technique, brochure, Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2006), checklist

Exhibition History

  • Rembrandt and the Aesthetics of Technique, Harvard University Art Museums, Busch-Reisinger Museum, 09/09/2006 - 12/10/2006

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu