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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2021.13
People
Circle of Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Dutch (Leiden 1606 - 1669 Amsterdam)
Title
An Old Bearded Man Kneeling in Prayer before a Bed, Approached by a Younger Man
Classification
Drawings
Work Type
drawing
Date
c. 1650
Culture
Dutch
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/369362

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Brown ink on tan antique laid paper, framing line in brown ink
Dimensions
14.7 × 14.3 cm (5 13/16 × 5 5/8 in.)
Inscriptions and Marks
  • inscription: verso of mount, lower left, graphite: Wff Ef
  • inscription: verso of mount, lower right, graphite: TTN / CE
  • inscription: verso of mount, center, graphite (faint): [possibly] F 858
  • inscription: mount, lower left, graphite: [illegible] X [illegible]

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
William Rothenstein, England (1872-1945).[1] [Walker-Goodman Art Gallery, Boston]. John and Anne Straus, New York, by 1957, bequest; to Harvard Art Museums

[1] In his memoir, "Men and Memories: Recollections 1872-1938 of William Rothenstein," 3 vols. (1931-40), William Rothenstein, the British artist, makes three references to his Rembrandt drawings, including his purchase of two Rembrandt drawings at “Parsons' in Brompton Road” (vol. 1, p. 239-40) and his sale of his Rembrandt drawings during World War I to support war relief efforts (vol. 2, p. 287); see also vol. 2, p. 21.

On Parsons, see https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG26077.

For additional information on Rothenstein's collection, see Augustus John, "Will Rothenstein," in "Sir William Rothenstein, 1872–1945: A Memorial Exhibition," Tate Gallery, London 1950, p. 4, and Samuel Shaw, "Rembrandt and Reality," in Samuel Shaw (ed.), "In Focus: The Doll’s House 1899–1900 by William Rothenstein," Tate Research Publication, 2016, https://www.tate.org.uk/research/publications/in-focus/the-dolls-house-william-rothenstein/rembrandt-and-reality, accessed 7 December 2020.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Bequest of Anne Helburn Straus
Accession Year
2021
Object Number
2021.13
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Otto Benesch, The Drawings of Rembrandt, Phaidon Press (Oxford, 1954 - 1957), volume 5 (1957), cat no. 868, repr. fig. 1076
  • Jakob Rosenberg, Review of Otto Benesch, "The Drawings of Rembrandt", vols. III-VI, The Art Bulletin (1959), vol. 41, no. 1, pp. 108-19, p. 118
  • Jeroen Giltaij, The Drawings by Rembrandt and His School in the Museum Boymans-Van Beuningen, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen (Rotterdam, 1988), pp. 292-93, note 4 (under cat. no. 162)

Subjects and Contexts

  • Dutch, Flemish, & Netherlandish Drawings

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or 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