A comprehensive guide to understanding copper plate, acid, drypoint, successive states, papers and prints that made Rembrandt an absolute master of printmaking.
Rembrandt does not reproduce his paintings: he thinks in black and white
Between approximately 1626 and 1665, Rembrandt produced around 290 to 300 prints. The majority are etchings, often used with a drypoint and sometimes with a chisel. They are not simple, cheaper versions of his paintings: they have their own formats, their own subjects and a grammar based on line, the white of the paper and the density of the ink.
The plate allows him to return to an image. He adds or erases sizes, modifies the light, changes the inking, chooses a different paper. Two sheets taken from the same matrix can thus produce very distant experiments.
How is etching made?
The final image is reversed from the drawing on the plate. Each step influences the fineness of the line, the depth of the blacks and the number of possible prints.
Prepare the copper
Plate is polished, degreased then coated with acid resistant varnish.
Draw with a needle
The artist removes the varnish without heavily digging into the metal. Copper appears under the line.
Acid bite
Acid attacks exposed parts. Several baths allow you to obtain different depths.
Take the plate again
Dry tip and chisel reinforce a shadow, correct a shape or create a new state.
Ink
The ink is pushed into the sizes, then the surface is wiped more or less completely.
Moisten the paper
Softened paper can penetrate hollows under pressure and collect ink.
Go to press
Strong pressure transfers the image and often leaves the rectangular imprint of the plate.
Examine the test
Rembrandt decides to continue editing, modify the plate or vary the wiping.
A multiplied image, never completely repeated
The matrix makes several prints possible. However, pressure, humidity of the paper, quantity of ink, wiping and wear of the plate modify each sheet. The edition is therefore not a perfectly uniform industrial series.
Etching, drypoint, chisel and plate tone
Catalogs often describe several techniques on the same sheet. Their combination explains the variety of Rembrandt lines.
Etching
Acid digs the lines drawn in the varnish. The gesture can remain free, quick and close to pen drawing.
Generally clear line, modulated by bite duration.Dry tip
The needle directly scratches the copper and lifts a metallic beard. This beard holds ink and gives a velvety black.
Fragile effect: beard quickly crushes under the press.Chisel
A sharp tool removes a metal chip. Rembrandt uses it to specify or reinforce certain sizes.
More controlled and durable line than drypoint beard.Plate tone
Instead of wiping all the copper, the printer leaves a veil of ink on the surface and opens lights with the cloth.
Each wipe can make the test noticeably unique.Chopping
Networks of parallel or crossed lines construct the shadow without removing the active white of the paper.
Their density reveals walls, fabrics, sky and depth.Counter-test
A fresh print can be transferred to a second sheet, giving a paler image and placed in the same direction as the plate.
It helps to compare drawing, plate and printing.
The Coin of a Hundred Florins
This composition brings together several episodes from chapter 19 of the Gospel according to Matthew: healings, welcomed children, debates with the Pharisees and departure of the rich young man. Christ forms the pivot between a clear, almost bare area and a crowd emerging from the depths.
Its nickname comes from a collecting tradition: a proof would have reached one hundred florins, a spectacular sum for a print. Rather, the original title describes Christ healing the sick.
The Three Crosses: understanding states
A condition is an identifiable version of the plate after a lasting modification. It should not be confused with a simple variation of inking or paper.
Why does a state count? Because it places the test in the material history of the matrix. A first state is not automatically "better"; some late states are major inventions. Quality also depends on printing, paper, preservation and the presence of drypoint beard.
Entombment: what wiping changes
The Metropolitan Museum retains two prints that show with exceptional clarity how the same brass can go from a readable scene to an almost tactile night.
The matrix
The added lines remain on all subsequent prints of this state.
Wiping
The ink veil changes from one impression to another without necessarily creating a new state.
The paper
Its color and surface further transform the temperature and accuracy of the image.
What's wrong with Rembrandt?
His repertoire ranges from grimaces to monumental biblical scenes. Humble subjects are never secondary: they teach him gestures, faces and narration.
Self-portraits and tronies
Rembrandt tests expressions, hairstyles, shadows and artist identities. In 1648, he represented himself at work near a window, a point or a feather in hand.
Bible and history
The Death of the Virgin displays a crowd, a monumental bed and a sky of angels with a freedom close to drawing.
Jobs and daily life
A goldsmith's workshop becomes a scene of attention: fire, tools, beams and a small figure working in the darkness.
Portraits
Clement de Jonghe, a print dealer, is struck in a calm pose. Six states show the repetitions of the background and the garment.
Neighborhood and observation
Figures discuss in a synagogue. The print organizes the space by the whites as much as by the hatched areas.
Knowledge and appearance
In Faust, a scholar turns away from his books in front of a luminous disk. The title is late, but the visual mystery remains.
Engraved landscapes
Rembrandt travels around Amsterdam and transforms sea walls, farms, trees and flat horizons into atmospheric experiences. In The Three Trees, the vertical group resists a sky crossed by a downpour and clearings.
The sheet is not limited to a topographical view. Travelers, workers and tiny scenes hide in the field. The landscape becomes a totality: weather, distance, human activity and duration.
Light, density and silence
Late prints do not always seek maximum sharpness. Black becomes a material capable of holding the eye.
European paper, Japanese paper and vellum
Rembrandt chooses its media for their hue, absorption and ability to retain drypoint effects. Paper is never a neutral background.
European laid paper
Made on a metal wire shape, it shows rods, pontuseaux and sometimes a watermark. These clues can help date and compare prints.
Japanese or Asian paper
Finer, warmer and more supple, it favors rich blacks and great finesse. Old notices sometimes use different terms for these imported papers.
Velin
This animal support, rare and expensive, gives a smooth and luminous surface. Certain tests of Three Crosses are printed on vellum.
Bartsch, Hind and New Hollstein
Letters and numbers placed after a title are not copy numbers. They refer to catalogs raisonnés which classify compositions and their states.
| Abbreviation | Catalog | Utility |
|---|---|---|
| B | Adam von Bartsch | Historical numbering still very common. |
| H | Arthur M. Hind | Ranking and chronology long used in English. |
| BB | Bioerklund and Barnard | 20th century reference, often visible in sales. |
| NH | New Hollstein | Modern reference detailing reports, papers and copies. |
Example: "B. 78, NH 274, IV/V" designates The Three Crosses in the catalogs of Bartsch and New Hollstein, here in fourth state out of five.
How do I examine a print attributed to Rembrandt?
Compare title, plate dimensions, signature and catalog references.
Observe the added lines, erased areas and lasting retouching of the matrix.
Look for rods, watermarks, fiber structure and consistency with documented papers.
Examine sharpness, relief of sizes, presence of beard, wiping, plate tone and wear.
A cropped sheet may remain authentic, but it loses clues: bowl, watermark and dimensions.
Collectible brands, old sales, certificates and publications must form a verifiable chain.
An original plaque may have been reprinted long after Rembrandt's death, sometimes after retouching.
Photography and signature are not enough to authenticate or estimate an important sheet.
Preserve etching without damaging it
Paper is sensitive to light, climatic variations, adhesives and acidic materials. Interventions must remain reversible.
Reference collections
Paper works are often presented in rotation for conservation reasons. Always check the hanging before a visit.
Rembrandt beyond printmaking
Rembrandt's etchings in ten answers
How many prints did Rembrandt make?
Catalogs and museums generally speak of around 290 to 300 prints, produced from the second half of the 1620s until 1665.
What is the difference between engraving and etching?
“Printmaking” is the broader term. In etching, acid bites the lines exposed through a protective ground; in burin engraving or drypoint, the tool acts directly on the metal.
Did Rembrandt print his plates himself?
He closely controlled printing and experimented with inking and papers. Assistants were able to participate in the material work of the workshop.
What's a state?
A version of the matrix after a lasting modification. A difference in wiping or paper alone does not constitute a new state.
Why does drypoint make a velvety black?
The metal raised along the incised line, called a burr, holds more ink. This burr wears down quickly under the pressure of the press.
Why are some impressions more sought after?
The state, quality of the impression, paper, condition, margins, provenance and rarity all contribute. An early date alone does not guarantee quality.
Is a posthumous reprint a fake?
Not necessarily, if correctly described as a posthumous impression from an original plate. However, it should not be sold as a lifetime impression.
How can you recognise the plate mark?
This is the slight rectangular imprint left by the edges of the plate under pressure. It may disappear if the sheet has been heavily trimmed.
Are the signatures reversed?
Rembrandt had to write in reverse on the plate so that the signature and date appeared the right way round in the impression.
Where can you see the largest collection of etchings?
The Rembrandt House Museum in Amsterdam holds almost all the compositions. The Rijksmuseum, British Museum, Met and NGA also have major collections.
Notices and references used
- House of Rembrandt - presentation of etchings
- Rembrandt's house - engraving demonstration
- Metropolitan Museum - Rembrandt: Prints
- Metropolitan Museum - drypoint
- Metropolitan Museum - The Hundred Florins Room
- Metropolitan Museum - The Three Crosses
- Metropolitan Museum - The Entombment, first state
- Metropolitan Museum - The Entombment, second state
- Metropolitan Museum - Self-portrait at the window
- Metropolitan Museum - Faust
- British Museum - The Three Crosses, references Bartsch and New Hollstein
- Rijksmuseum - identity discussed from the so-called portrait of Menasseh ben Israel
- House of Rembrandt - portrait and identification of Menasseh ben Israel
- Metropolitan Museum - etching by doctor Ephraim Bueno
- Reproduction of Ephraim Bueno - Wikimedia Commons, public domain
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