Abraham's Sacrifice

The young Rembrandt had painted the subject of the sacrifice in 1635 (Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg), but the etched version appears more subtle in the staging. Abraham, at centre, presses Isaac's head against his side and covers his eyes with his right hand, to spare him from the sight of the knife he holds in the other hand. Isaac, kneeling helpless over a large dish, is rescued by the angel. The messenger sent by God, with his spread wings enclosing the main scene, intervenes in the very moment the father is about to accomplish the terrible deed. The figures are mostly rendered in outline and stand out against the dark and tonal background. The image is largely completed in etching, and then worked up and enhanced with touches of drypoint, noticeable in the present impression in the fuzzy, velvety lines of burr to the left of the logs beneath the bowl, in the folds of Abraham and the Angel's garments, and in the dark background at centre left. The pronounced, fine horizontal polishing scratches present in this impression contribute to the softness and fluidity of the image.