Isaac and Rebecca, Known as ‘The Jewish Bride’

Rembrandt van Rijn, c. 1665 - c. 1669

To prevent being killed and having his wife captured by King Abimelech, Isaac concealed his love for Rebecca by pretending they were brother and sister. However, their intimacy betrayed them when they thought they were not being spied on. Rembrandt depicts them in a tender moment. Furthermore, he works with exceptional freedom, applies the paint thickly, and scratches into it with the butt end of his paintbrush.

Artwork typepainting
Object numberSK-C-216
Dimensionsheight 121.5 cm x width 166.5 cm
Physical characteristicsoil on canvas

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Isaac and Rebecca, Known as ‘The Jewish Bride’

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Identification

Title(s)
- Portrait of a couple as figures from the Old Testament, known as 'The Jewish bride' (former title)
- Portrait of a Couple as Isaac and Rebecca, known as 'The Jewish Bride'
- Isaac and Rebecca, Known as ‘The Jewish Bride’
Object type
Object number
SK-C-216
Description
Portret van een paar als Isaac en Rebecca of andere oudtestamentische figuren, bekend onder de titel 'Het Joodse bruidje' of 'De Joodse bruid'. De man legt zijn rechterhand op de borst van de vrouw, de linkerarm over de schouders. De vrouw legt haar linkerhand op de hand van de man, de rechterhand voor de buik. Het paar is geportretteerd staande, tot de knieën, voor een muur.
Inscriptions / marks
signature and date: ‘Rembrandt f. 16...’

Creation

Creation
painter: Rembrandt van Rijn
Dating
c. 1665 - c. 1669
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Material and technique

Physical description
oil on canvas
Dimensions
height 121.5 cm x width 166.5 cm

This work is about

Subject

Acquisition and rights

Credit line
On loan from the City of Amsterdam (A. van der Hoop Bequest)
Copyright
Public domain

Documentation

- Feico Hoekstra 'Het 'ideale' paar van Rembrandt', Antiek 31 (1996) nr. 2, p. 59-65.
- The Rembrandt Database, Object information, Rembrandt, Portrait of a couple as Isaac and Rebecca, 1662-1666, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, inv. no. SK-C-216, http://www.rembrandtdatabase.org/Rembrandt/painting/3068/portrait-of-a-couple-as-isaac-and-rebecca, accessed 2016 May 04
- Anke Teunis, 'Oud en nieuw', Rijksmuseum Kunstkrant (2002) nr. 4, p. 18-19.
- R.H. Fuchs, 'Het zogenaamde 'Joodse bruidje' en het probleem van de 'voordracht' in Rembrandts werk', Tijdschrift voor Geschiedenis (1969), p. 482-493.
- Pieter de Dreu, 'Portret van een paar, genaamd 'Het Joodse Bruidje', Rijksmuseum Kunstkrant 16 (1989/1990) nr. 1, p. 2-3.
- Marleen Dominicus-Van Soest, 'Rembrandt in nieuw licht', Rijksmuseum Kunstkrant 19 (1993) nr. 3, p. 3-7.
- Christian Tümpel, 'Studien zur Ikonografie der Historien Rembrandts', in: Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek 20 (1969), p. 107-198.
- M.L. Wurfbein, 'De liefde een groot stuck', Leids jaarboekje (1971), p. 173-181.