Photo: Sotheby's
In 2014, the painting was sold at a Lempertz auction in Cologne for 1.5 million euros as a work of the “17th-century Dutch school.” At the time, it was not associated with Rembrandt, according to The Guardian. It was only later, after the acquisition, that research and restoration began, leading to a reassessment of the attribution.
The painting was created around 1627, during the artist’s early period, shortly after his return to Leiden. Research shows that the work was subsequently partially completed by another master or a student, who added later layers of paint and altered certain elements of the composition.
The original authorship was established by Amsterdam art dealer Jan Six. A key observation was the figure of a young man who is looking not at Christ, but directly at the viewer. According to experts, this may be an early self-portrait by Rembrandt.
During restoration, the later layers of paint were removed, allowing the original painting to be revealed and previously hidden details to be uncovered. One of the most significant discoveries was the depiction of the central figure: instead of an elderly man wearing a Dutch headdress, a man wearing an Eastern turban was found beneath the layers of paint. According to art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon, this detail offers a new interpretation of the work, highlighting the idea of cultural openness and the coexistence of diverse traditions in the Netherlands during the Thirty Years’ War.
The painting is of interest as a rare example of Rembrandt’s early creative process. The unfinished areas allow us to trace how the artist built up the composition—from the detailed background to the figures in the foreground.
If the work sells at the upper end of the estimate, it will rank among the most expensive Rembrandt works ever sold at public auction. According to Sotheby’s, this is the only known painting by the master depicting the scene “Let the Children Come to Me.” Researchers also suggest that the artist may have depicted members of his own family among the figures, which lends the work a potentially personal character.
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