THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A museum announced Monday that a painting once considered a work by Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn is subject to a two-year review in the city where the then-27-year-old artist painted it in 1633.
The Rijksmuseum, the National Museum of Art and History of the Netherlands, unveiled the work “The Vision of Zechariah in the Temple” and said that after painstaking analysis, including high-tech scanning, it was confirmed that the work was created by Rembrandt after he moved to the capital Amsterdam.
The museum said in a statement that the painting had not been on public display for decades since it was bought by a private collector in 1961, a year after it was deemed not to be by Rembrandt. From Wednesday, the work will be on display alongside other masterpieces from the Rijksmuseum and on long-term loan.
Director Taco Dibbits said the museum often receives emails from people asking whether the painting they own might just be the work of a Golden Age master.
“We always hope to find a new Rembrandt, but it rarely happens,” he told The Associated Press. Making such a discovery is “like looking for a needle in a haystack,” he said.
The unnamed owner initially only asked the museum if the painting was Dutch.
“He really didn’t know what he had. And then to find out it was by Rembrandt was an amazing experience,” Dibbits said.
The painting depicts a biblical story in which the archangel Gabriel visited the high priest Zechariah, who told the priest that he and his wife would have a son: John the Baptist. The museum said the lights heralding Gabriel’s arrival highlighted Zacharias’ surprised expression.
Jonathan Bikker, the museum’s curator of 17th-century Dutch paintings, said in-depth research into the work, including macroscopic X-ray fluorescence scans and comparisons with other works by the artist, confirmed it was by Rembrandt.
“Therefore, the wood used to make the painting’s panels must have come from trees felled before 1633 (the date on the painting),” he said.
“All the paints and pigments in this painting were used by Rembrandt in other paintings. The layers of paint and the way of painting are also exactly the same as in Rembrandt’s other works,” he added.
The work joins some 350 known paintings by Rembrandt, raising hopes that there may be more.
“We’re not actively looking for new paintings by Rembrandt, but I think this gives us hope — not just us, but everyone who is interested in Rembrandt,” Bick said.
