The Descent from the Cross: Second Plate
Medium
Etching and burin on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Image: 51.2 × 40.5 cm (20 3/16 × 16 in.); Sheet trimmed within platemark: 52 × 40.5 cm (20 1/2 × 16 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
29116
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Rays of heavenly light pierce the darkness that is said to have descended when Jesus died, harshly illuminating his followers as they lower his body from the cross. Rembrandt depicts Jesus’s corpse with unprecedented realism, emphasizing its weight and humanity. Also unconventional was Rembrandt’s choice to lend his features to the figure standing on the ladder. This imposing print was based on a painting Rembrandt executed for the prestigious patron Prince Frederick Henry of Orange—perhaps as a...
About the Artist
Rembrandt van Rijn · 1606–1669
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606–1669) stands as one of the greatest visual artists in the history of Western art and the most important Dutch painter of the 17th century. Born in Leiden to a prosperous miller's family, Rembrandt transformed painting through his revolutionary use of light and shadow, his psychological depth in portraiture, and his elevation of etching to a fine art. His approx...