Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
The Descent from the Cross by Torchlight1654

On view:

Geffen Galleries

Etching depicting the descent of a pale, limp figure from a large wooden cross, surrounded by multiple figures in deep chiaroscuro, with a white shroud spread on rocky ground below

Artist or Maker: Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
Northern Netherlands, 1606-1669
Title: The Descent from the Cross by Torchlight
Place Made: Holland
Date Made: 1654
Medium: Etching and drypoint
Dimensions: Sheet: 8 3/8 × 6 3/8 in. (21.27 × 16.19 cm) Image: 8 3/8 × 6 3/8 in. (21.27 × 16.19 cm)
Credit Line: Art Museum Council Fund
Accession Number: M.62.3.3
Classification: Prints
Collecting Area: Prints and Drawings
Curatorial Notes: Among the most somber of Rembrandt’s night pieces, this etching is part of a series of scenes from the Passion, showing the removal of Christ’s body from the cross on which he was crucified. The print’s distinctive composition—in which the central action occurs at upper left, while the foreground is occupied by a bier draped in a shroud—reinforces its solemn, meditative tone and echoes the style of late medieval andachtsbilder used for contemplative devotion. Joseph of Arimathaea, the saint responsible for the burial of Jesus, kneels at right, signaling the entombment to come, while others assisting in the Deposition seem to emerge from the darkness, as if suggestive of death themselves. At left, the bottom portion of the cross is visible, with Christ’s head in partial shadow, while torchlight illuminates the gruesome wounds on his feet. Rembrandt’s masterful handling of etched lines amplifies the contrast between light and shadow, in turn encouraging the viewer to contemplate the sober reality of Christ’s sacrifice.

Claire Spadafora Baes

2025
Selected Bibliography: Bartsch, Adam von. The Illustrated Bartsch. New York: Abaris Books, 1978.
Hollstein, F. W. H. Dutch and Flemish Etchings, Engravings, and Woodcuts, ca. 1450-1700. Amsterdam: M. Hertzberger, 1949.
Magaloni, Diana, Michael Govan, and Miguel Fernámdez Félix, eds. Picasso & Rivera: Conversaciones a Través del Tiempo. Mexico City: Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes; Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2017.

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
The Descent from the Cross by Torchlight1654

On view:

Geffen Galleries

Artist or Maker: Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn
Northern Netherlands, 1606-1669
Title: The Descent from the Cross by Torchlight
Place Made: Holland
Date Made: 1654
Medium: Etching and drypoint
Dimensions: Sheet: 8 3/8 × 6 3/8 in. (21.27 × 16.19 cm) Image: 8 3/8 × 6 3/8 in. (21.27 × 16.19 cm)
Credit Line: Art Museum Council Fund
Accession Number: M.62.3.3
Classification: Prints
Collecting Area: Prints and Drawings
Curatorial Notes: Among the most somber of Rembrandt’s night pieces, this etching is part of a series of scenes from the Passion, showing the removal of Christ’s body from the cross on which he was crucified. The print’s distinctive composition—in which the central action occurs at upper left, while the foreground is occupied by a bier draped in a shroud—reinforces its solemn, meditative tone and echoes the style of late medieval andachtsbilder used for contemplative devotion. Joseph of Arimathaea, the saint responsible for the burial of Jesus, kneels at right, signaling the entombment to come, while others assisting in the Deposition seem to emerge from the darkness, as if suggestive of death themselves. At left, the bottom portion of the cross is visible, with Christ’s head in partial shadow, while torchlight illuminates the gruesome wounds on his feet. Rembrandt’s masterful handling of etched lines amplifies the contrast between light and shadow, in turn encouraging the viewer to contemplate the sober reality of Christ’s sacrifice.

Claire Spadafora Baes

2025
Selected Bibliography: Bartsch, Adam von. The Illustrated Bartsch. New York: Abaris Books, 1978.
Hollstein, F. W. H. Dutch and Flemish Etchings, Engravings, and Woodcuts, ca. 1450-1700. Amsterdam: M. Hertzberger, 1949.
Magaloni, Diana, Michael Govan, and Miguel Fernámdez Félix, eds. Picasso & Rivera: Conversaciones a Través del Tiempo. Mexico City: Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes; Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2017.