Christ crucified between two thieves: 'The three crosses' thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Request to view at the Prints & Drawings Study Room, level F , Case EDUC, Shelf 9, Box B

Christ crucified between two thieves: 'The three crosses'

Print
ca. 1660 (made)
Artist/Maker
Rembrandt Van Rijn (artist)
Place of origin
Amsterdam (made)

About 1660 Rembrandt made extensive changes to this major plate, fundamentally altering large parts of the composition and increasing the darkness and drama of the scene. In this richly-worked fourth state he introduced the dominant figure of a mounted soldier derived from a Renaissance medal by Pisanello. This detail would have appealed to C. A. Ionides, who bequeathed the print to the V&A, who was collecting such medals (either as originals or facsimiles) around the time he acquired this print.


Object details

Categories
Prints
Printmaking Techniques
Religion
Christianity
Object type
print
Titles
  • Christ crucified between two thieves: 'The three crosses' (published title)
  • Our Lord crucified between two thieves, 'The three crosses' (alternative title)
Materials and techniques
Drypoint
Ink
Paper
Drypoint
Brief description
Drypoint and burin by Rembrandt van Rijn, 'Christ crucified between two thieves: 'The three crosses', fourth state. Amsterdam, ca. 1660.
Physical description
Drypoint and burin depicting three men on crosses, the one in the centre is bathed in rays of light. There are a crowd of people gathered around the crosses and on the left, there are two men on horses.
Dimensions
  • Height: 38.8cm
  • Width: 45.4cm
Style
Dutch School
Credit line
Bequeathed by C. A. Ionides
Object history
Begun in 1653 and reworked in the 1660s.
Bequeathed by C.A. Ionides, 1900.
Purchased by Ionides from Goupil for £25, before 1881.
Subjects depicted
Jesus Christ
The Crucifixion
Summary
About 1660 Rembrandt made extensive changes to this major plate, fundamentally altering large parts of the composition and increasing the darkness and drama of the scene. In this richly-worked fourth state he introduced the dominant figure of a mounted soldier derived from a Renaissance medal by Pisanello. This detail would have appealed to C. A. Ionides, who bequeathed the print to the V&A, who was collecting such medals (either as originals or facsimiles) around the time he acquired this print.
Bibliographic references
  • Taken from V&A Internal Catalogue
  • Bartsch, Adam von. Catalogue raisonné de toutes les estampes qui forment l'oeuvre de Rembrandt (Vienna, 1797).
  • White, Christopher and Boon, Karel G. Rembrandt's Etchings: An Illustrated Critical Catalogue in Two Volumes, I. Text. (Amsterdam: Van Gendt & Co; London: A. Zwemmer Ltd., 1969).
  • Jonathan Bikker and Gregor J.M. Weber, Marjorie E. Wieseman and Erik Hinterding; with contributions by Marijn Schapelhouman and Anna Krekeler; editorial consultant, Christopher White. Rembrandt: the late works. (London: National Gallery Company; Amsterdam: in association with the Rijksmuseum, 2014). p.159.
  • Blanc, Charles, L'oeuvre complet de Rembrandt, décrit et commenté, (Paris, 1859-61).
  • Hind, Arthur M. A Catalogue of Rembrandt's Etchings. (London: Methuen and Co. Ltd., 1923).
  • Biörklund George. Rembrandt's Etchings, True and False: A Summary Catalogue in a Distinctive Chronological Order and Completely Illustrated, (Stockholm, London & Paris, 1955) (2nd ed. 1968).
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
CAI.637

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Record createdMarch 31, 2008
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O151801/christ-crucified-between-two-thieves-print-rembrandt-van-rijn/
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