The Circumcision, Rembrandt van Rijn, c. 1625
etching, h 213mm × w 167mm More details
This is Rembrandt’s very first print, heralding the extraordinary ambition of this newcomer to the art of etching. He chose a composition with many figures and worked it out in a large format. It shows the circumcision of Jesus, a subject he often revisited thereafter. Unlike Rembrandt’s later etchings, which he issued himself, this one was published by the printseller Beerendrecht in Haarlem.
