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The Entombment

ca. 1654
Not on view
The startling difference between this impression and the impression of the first state (20.46.17) has less to do with the many hatched lines Rembrandt added to the composition in the second state than with the veil of ink he left on the copperplate as it was printed. This ink turns the previously brightly lit scene into a dark one in which only the faces and hands of the central figures are illuminated. By initially leaving this tone on the copperplate and wiping away the ink only where he wanted to leave touches of light, Rembrandt printed both the etched lines and the layer of ink left on the surface. As a result of this exceptional painting of the plate before printing, each impression Rembrandt pulled was unique.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Entombment
  • Artist: Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) (Dutch, Leiden 1606–1669 Amsterdam)
  • Date: ca. 1654
  • Medium: Etching, drypoint, and engraving; second of four states
  • Dimensions: Sheet: 8 1/4 x 6 5/16 in. (21 x 16 cm)
    Frame: 21 × 16 in. (53.3 × 40.6 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Gift of Henry Walters, by exchange, 1923
  • Object Number: 23.51.7
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

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Abraham Casting out Hagar and Ishmael, Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) Dutch, Etching with touches of drypoint
Abraham Casting out Hagar and Ishmael
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn)
1637
St. Jerome Reading, Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) Dutch, Etching
St. Jerome Reading
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn)
1634
Return of the Prodigal Son, Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) Dutch, Etching, pen and ink
Return of the Prodigal Son
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn)
1620–69
St. Jerome in Prayer, Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) Dutch, Etching
St. Jerome in Prayer
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn)
1635
Portrait of Lieven Willemsz van Coppenol, Writing Master (the larger plate), Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) Dutch, Etching and drypoint; fourth state
Portrait of Lieven Willemsz van Coppenol, Writing Master (the larger plate)
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn)
1658

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