''Head of Christ'' is a 17th-century painting by
Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...
's workshop. It shows Christ with a beard and long dark hair. It is in the collection of the
Philadelphia Museum of Art
The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMoA) is an art museum originally chartered in 1876 for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The main museum building was completed in 1928 on Fairmount, a hill located at the northwest end of the Benjamin Fr ...
, in
Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania.
Description
Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...
created several similar heads in varying poses, possibly as devotional objects. Today about a dozen are known. This one came into the collection via the
John G. Johnson
John Graver Johnson (1841, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – April 13, 1917, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an American corporate lawyer and art collector. The Philadelphia law firm that he founded in 1863 continues under the name Saul Ewing. H ...
bequest. This face of Christ relates very closely to depictions found in two prints by Rembrandt that portray Christ preaching to an attentive audience.
[
This painting was documented by ]Hofstede de Groot
Cornelis Hofstede de Groot (9 November 1863 – 14 April 1930), was a Dutch art collector, art historian and museum curator.
Life
He was born in Dwingeloo and spent some time in Switzerland in his youth due to weak lungs, where he learned Germa ...
in 1914, who wrote; "163. HEAD OF CHRIST. Wb. 324;
B.-HdG. 412. Almost in full face. Long dark curls and a thin full beard. In a reddish-brown cloak. Half-length, about half life size. Painted about 1656-58.
Oak panel, 13 inches by 11 1/2 inches.
Mentioned by Vosmaer, p. 555; by Bode, p. 523; by Dutuit, p. 53.
In the collection of Madame de Saulcy, Paris.
In the collection of the Comte de la Bégassière, Paris.
In the possession of the Paris dealer C. Sedelmeyer, "Catalogue of 100 Paintings," vii. No. 33.
In the collection of John G. Johnson, Philadelphia, 1914 catalogue, No. 480."
The painting was included in most Rembrandt catalogs of the 20th-century, only recently being rejected as autograph by the latest RRP catalog. It is, however, still connected with Rembrandt's workshop and is grouped together with all the other versions. In 2004, dendrochronological analysis determined that the source of the oak panel—both the original from the seventeenth century—and the main one came from the Baltic/Polish regions. The analysis yielded a probable creation date of 1628 or later.New York
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Film and television
* '' ...
File:Rembrandt - Christ with Hands Folded 1971.37.jpg, Hyde collection
File:Rembrandt - Head of Christ - Fogg Museum.jpg, Fogg
File:Rembrandt - Head of Christ - BYU.jpg, Brigham Young University
References
* ''Rembrandt et la figure du Christ/Rembrandt and the face of Jesus'', Musée du Louvre, Paris, 21 April 2011 – 18 July 2011, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, 3 August 2011 – 30 October 2011, Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, 20 November 2011 – 12 February 2012, , cat.no. 40.
External links
''Christus, ca. 1648-1656''
in the RKD
Rembrandt's ''Heads of Christ''
on Louvre website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Head of Christ
Paintings by Rembrandt
1650s paintings
Paintings in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art