Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn

From an album belonging to Archibald Keightley, Registrar of Charterhouse in the early 19th Century and friend and executor of Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A.;
by inheritance to his daughter, Sarah, who married Sir Charles Nicolson;
by inheritance to their grandson, Sir John Nicolson;
sold by him, London, Sotheby's, 11 November 1965, lot 64;
sale, Amsterdam, Sotheby's, 2 November 2004, lot 78 (purchased by the present owner)

Laid down onto late 19th or 20th-century backing paper (not acid-free). Paper somewhat discoloured. Various small stains and abrasions. Possible repaired tear, lower right. Minor loss, lower left corner. Sold in a modern carved and gilded frame.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Rembrandt's drawings of the farms, roads and dykes that he saw on his various walks around the outskirts of Amsterdam have long been the subject of both fascination and research.  The idea that it might be possible to trace the actual routes walked by the artist, all those years ago, and identify the specific buildings he depicted in his drawings, particularly captivated the young Frits Lugt, who in 1915 published his famous book, Wandelingen met Rembrandt in en om Amsterdam (Walks with Rembrandt in and around Amsterdam).  Much more recently, the theme was explored again in a memorable exhibition, which brought together for the first time many of the drawings, and also added an immense amount of new topographical information.¹  At the time of the 2004 sale, Boudewijn Bakker and Erik Schmitz, two of the authors of the 1998 exhibition catalogue, very kindly provided the information that forms the basis of the following description of the buildings seen in this drawing, and we are extremely grateful to them for their generous help.  

This previously unpublished drawing shows a rural building that combines the function of an inn with the form of a typical farm of the period.  The roofline of the main building appears to rise behind the chimney, suggesting a traditional langhuisstolp construction. There is also a second barn building, projecting to the right, at right-angles to the main part of the farm, which appears to have been built on a slight slope.  Above and behind this part of the building there are indications of another structure;  though it is hard to be sure, it seems possible that these lines may refer to a construction of poles used for the drying of fishing nets, of a type that can be seen much more clearly in two drawings of a farm on the Amsteldijk, in the Lugt Collection and at Chatsworth (Benesch 1294 and 1296).  Other distinctive features of the building are the indication of a second, inner structure at the top of the chimney, suggesting that the stack may have been rebuilt at some stage, and the presence of decorative, trefoil-shaped barge-boards on the gable-end, above the projecting inn sign.  There is also another small, S-shaped structure projecting from the façade, a little higher up, which might be a hook on which to hang a lantern, and in front of the building, by the main door, are benches on which the inn's customers could sit. 

As regards the possible location of these buildings, it is clear from the lie of the land that they must have been on one of the main sea dykes on the outskirts of Amsterdam, and the tall pole to the left, which is a navigational aid, further indicates that the location must have been at a corner in the dyke.  Since the appearance of the various inns along the Diemerdijk is clearly recorded in prints and drawings by Rembrandt and others, Boudewijn Bakker and Erik Schmitz have concluded that the inn shown here must have been one of several others that are known to have existed along the Spaarndammerdijk, which ran along the IJ to the west of Amsterdam, protecting the polders on that side of the city from flooding.  Although the farms and inns on the Spaardammerdijk are not so well documented in Rembrandt's work, Jan van Goyen's sketchbook of 1650-51 included several studies made in that area, showing buildings that are extremely similar in shape and positioning to those seen here.²

Stylistically, this drawing is characterised by its very dry, almost scratchy pen-work and extremely limited use of wash.  As in so many of Rembrandt's sketchier landscapes, space is very much hinted at rather than clearly defined, yet the buildings and landscape setting nonetheless have considerable substance and presence.  As Peter Schatborn and others have pointed out, it can be associated stylistically with a fairly distinct group of drawings, which also includes Landscape with a Cottage, in the Rijksprentenkabinet, Farm-buildings beside a Road, in Oxford, Wide Riverscape, in Copenhagen, and View of a Canal, in Rotterdam (Benesch 1222, 1226, 1308a, and 1336 respectively).  Schatborn believes those drawings were probably executed around 1652, and suggests a similar dating for the present study. 

Though relatively modest in scale, this drawing nonetheless captures with great delicacy the presence and atmosphere of this wayside inn, nestling on the side of a dyke.  Its emergence in 2004 was therefore a significant addition to the very important group of drawings by Rembrandt, depicting the buildings to be found along the routes of the various walks that he seems so often to have made during the 1650s, from Amsterdam to the surrounding villages and towns.  

1.  B. Bakker, M. van Berge-Gerbaud, E. Schmitz and J. Peeters, Landscapes of Rembrandt. His favourite walks, Amsterdam, Gemeentearchief, and Paris, Institut Néerlandais, 1998-9  
2.   H.-U. Beck, Jan van Goyen 1596-1656, vol. I, Amsterdam 1972, p. 307,  no. 847/162