141

Rembrandt van Rijn

(1606-1669)

The Blindness of Tobit: The Larger Plate.

Etching, 1651.
Biörklund's first state (of 2); Usticke's first state (of 2); New Hollstein's first state (of 2). Foolscap with a seven-pointed collar watermark. Bartsch 42; Biörklund 51-D; New Hollstein 265.
Plate: 6 3/8 x 5 1/8 in. (16.3 x 13 cm.), small margins.

  • Notes:
    Rembrandt depicted Tobit numerous times throughout his career. In this composition, he captures an intimate and human moment in which Tobit hastily reaches for the door when he learns his long-expected son has finally returned. In his eagerness, he has knocked over the spinning wheel to reach the son whose dog has run ahead and nestled into his robes in greeting. Tobit holds his hand out in anticipation of reaching his son.

    The composition broke from typical representations of this scene that showed Tobit's wife Anna greeting her son outdoors while Tobit remains in the background. By placing the work in a typical domestic setting with fish hanging in the fireplace, Rembrandt places the moment in a contemporary Dutch setting while also referencing the miracle that reverses Tobit's blindness.
  • Condition:
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October 30, 2025 10:30 AM EDT
New York, NY, US

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