Live Auction 7781Old Master Prints
Christie’s roundel
Lot 56

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn

The Baptism of the Eunuch (B., Holl. 98; H. 182)

Closed8 December 2009

Price Realised

GBP 5,000

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Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
The Baptism of the Eunuch (B., Holl. 98; H. 182)
etching with engraving, 1641, without watermark, a good impression of the second, final state, with some additions in pen and ink and grey wash, with thread margins, an oblique crease at the left, pale scattered foxing, some wear at the left sheet edge with some occasional minor repairs and lesser defects
P., S. 179 x 214 mm.

H. Finch, 5th Earl of Aylesford (1786-1859), London & Packington Hall, Warwickshire (L. 58).
A. Morrison (1821-1897), London (L. 151).

Specialist note

The narrative concerns 'a eunuch of great authority under Candace Queen of the Ethiopians' who was returning from Jerusalem reading the book of Isaiah on the road. An angel noticing his devotion summoned Saint Phillip who intervened, baptising the eunuch at a river nearby. Rembrandt's teacher Pieter Lastman painted the subject, as did Rembrandt three years later. One of the motifs he copied was the parasol that signified the eunuch's pre-eminence, contrasting with his humility as he kneels.