Follower of Follower of Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, circa 1642

Raymond Gueneau de Mussy Sere de Riviers Garnier and Isidora Cousiño Goyenechea Sebire, Paris 1918, until 1952;
Thence by descent to the present collector.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This work is generally in excellent condition. The panel has been cradled. The panel is made from three sections of oak joined vertically. The joins are on either side of the cross. No weakness has developed to the shadowed areas of the figure group. The sky is similarly well preserved. There are a couple of old dents in the panel in the upper right and another slight dent above the hat of the figure leaning over the top of the cross. There is a slightly rough texture down the left edge.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This intriguing and highly refined panel closely follows Rembrandt’s celebrated composition The Descent from the Cross, which was part of the founding collection of the Alte Pinakothek in Munich in 1836 (fig. 1; inv. 395). Rembrandt’s prototype from circa 1633 is one of seven paintings commissioned for the Stadtholder Frederick Hendrik, Prince of Orange, between the years 1633 and 1646.

The design of the present panel follows the basic compositional elements of the Munich picture, apart from being rectangular in format rather than having a rounded top. The fine preservation of the present panel allows for a clear reading of Rembrandt’s design as all elements of the composition are still readily visible. Notably, background figures such as the lamenting Mary in the lower left and the supporting male figure beside the ladder in the middle background are still legible, whereas in the Munich version they have faded over time.

X-rays of the Munich painting reveal that Rembrandt changed the composition as he worked, most notably the lower left corner, which originally showed three figures spreading a burial cloth, rather than the swooning figure of Mary as seen here and in the final version of the original. This earlier version of the composition is further documented by an etching in reverse dated 1633 (fig. 2). The present work must therefore have been made after 1633.  The print was traditionally given to Rembrandt, but modern scholars now believe it was a joint project by Rembrandt and Van Vliet or even possibly by Van Vliet alone. 

Further evidence in support of a contemporary execution of this panel is provided by dendrochronoligical analysis undertaken in 2014, which dates the oak panel to circa 1642.¹ This analysis shows that two of the boards which make up this Descent from the Cross panel (boards II and III) come from the same tree, and that the youngest heartwood ring was formed out in the year 1625, indicating an earliest felling date of 1634, and a likely usage date of 1642.

1.  A copy of Peter Klein’s report may be inspected upon request, and will be made available to the purchaser.