FINE ARTS,
A RESUSCITATED REMBRANDT,
WHEN one hears of the discovery of a fine picture, the work of a great master, the first feeling is of a sceptical kind : with such an impression, we attended a private view of a " splendid historical picture " by REMBRANDT, in the gallery of its possessor, Mr. ATHERSTONE, 46, Great Marlborough Street. A very short time, however, sufficed to convince us of the genuineness of the painting, and its high qualities: we have no doubt of its being the production of REMBRANDT, and one of the grandest efforts of his genius that this country possesses; moreover, it is in perfect preservation. The subject is Abraham offering up his son Isaac, with whole-length figures nearly the size of life ; and it is treated in that homely style which derives its impres- siveness from the simplicity of the conception, and the artist's power in realizing the scene by dint of strong natural expression ; sup- plying the want of ideal beauty of form and elevation of character by a solemn chiaroscuro, producing in conjunction with the painter's earnestness of purpose and the intense expression of the faces, an ima- ginative grandeur that partakes of sublimity. Isaac, naked and bound, is lying on his back against a heap of fagots; his father covers his sous thee with one hand, and the other, up- lifted to strike the blow, is arrested by the angel who grasps his wrist: Abraham drops the knife, and looks op at the heavenly messenger above him with an expression in which astonishment and awe are blended. The Patriarch is evidently a study from the head that was REMBRANDT'S model for his Rabbis and his Belshazzar, which last it strongly reminds us of : he is dressed in what may have been the fashion of the Jews of the painter's day, mid wears at his side a cast of knives such as might have been used by a Rabbi of modern times: the angel INAS no pretensions to beauty, either mortal or celestial, and his hair bears a strong resemblance to a thrum wig : nor is the draw- ing of Isaac's legs and feet and the angel's hand in conformity with academic principles. These are defects, however, that serve to stamp the character of authenticity on the work ; though less powerfully than the brilliancy of the colouring, the unearthly gloom of the chiaroscuro, the masterly handling, and the artful arrangement of the lights and shadows. The grained face of the old man, that seems as if the blood was retreating from it, the gleaming eyes of the angel, and even the foreshortening of the wing, denote that imaginative feeling which re- deem % tin.! uncomh style of REMBRANDT. The serpentine line that conducts the light through the picture, anti the dend-tlut enshrouds all distant objects and unimportant items, such as the wood, the pack-saddle of the ass, the ram in the thicket, Sec. bringing out the leading features of the group, will be appreciated by all connois- seurs. • The flesh tints of the body of Isaac are transparent in hue and solid in texture: the light is concentrated here, and its breadth and luminousness are such as those who are acquainted wills REMBRANDT'S works can alone imagine. In splendour of effect, this picture is equal to any we know of by the master ; and in grandeur of character, as well as in size and importance, it is one of his greatest works. It is a repetition of the subject of the famous REMBRANDT formerly in the Houghton collection, now at St. Petersburg ; but there are some points of difference in the composition and the character of the heads, that incline us to consider this the first conception of the two ; and though less graceful than the other, it is more simple and natural. The heads of Abraham and the Angel are more like Grim than REM.. BRANDT, in the mezzotint front the Houghton picture, which looks like II !minus:DT improved. The direct and impressive manner in which the story is told in this newly-found picture, constitutes one of its strongest claims to admiration and confidence in its originality : so instantaneous is the action, that the suddenness of the apparition at the critical moment is evident ; the restraining grasp of the angel has caused the knife to fall from the hand of Abraham before he becomes conscious of the presence of the celestial being who has descended in a burst of radiance. The look and gesture of the angel, and his position, are far more eloquent and commanding than in the Houghton picture ; and the face of A braham is infinitely finer—never has emotion been more intensely depicted than in the blank amazement of the fixed eyes and. the relaxed muscles of the open mouth. A picture by REMBRANDT of this high character and fine quality ought to be secured for the National Gallery. Three thousand guineas is the value put upon it ; and (regard- ing it as an undoubted work of Resinnasser) we should think it a fide price : the small picture by this master of" The Woman taken in Adultery" is estimated at 4,000/. "But how came this picture not to be known before? and under what circumstances has it been brought to light ?" will be naturally inquired. Its present possessor says he bought itof a dealer, who had it from another dealer, who took it in exchange from a gentleman, who brought it from time Continent ; that the first possessor prized it very highly, though it was then so disguised, having been painted over by some improver of REM- nitANDT, that few traces of its masterly handling, and none whatever of the splendid colouring and chiaroscuro, were visible ; and that he himself when he bought it, had doubts of its being a veritable REM BRANDT, but upon washing off the daubing that concealed its lustre, the brilliant gem appeared, pure and spotless. Mr. ATHERSTONE, it may be remem- bered, Is the owner of the "Corregio Magdalen" exhibited a year or two ago, and -which he bought under similar circumstances. The ac- quisition of two such pictures by the same individual is extraordinary ; nd not only a proof of the perspicacity of his judgment, but also of the superficial knowledge of the common run of picture-dealers ; it makes a curious and instructive chapter in the history of picture-buying. The Mag dalen was exhibited at the same time, and its preeminently grand qua- lities were as conspicuous as ever : in depth and luminousness of tone it surpasses even the solid brilliancy of the ..EMBRANDT, and its more
i elevated style shows t to be the work of a loftier imagination : neither picture suffers by the comparison, however; both being fine of their kind. Several other pictures in the gallery attracted attention : in par- ticular, a large picture (the figures of life-size) of that one of the series of designs by RAPHAEL of the "Marriage of Cupid and Psyche" where Jupiter blesses theyouthfulbridegroom ; the god of love stands at the i
knee of Jove, who s bestowing on him a parting kiss ; and in drawing the boy's face towards his own, Jove squeezes up the soft cheek and pulpy lips—a touch of humanity heightening the divine beauty. The drawing and design are RAPRAEL'S—we need say no more : the paint- ing is highly finished, in a broad, free style, singularly pure and chaste in colour, and of a pearly gray tone : by -whom it is painted is not ascer- tained. The picture is worthy of the design, be it whose it may it too was found obscured by a mask of vile daubing. Besides this grand work, we noticed a fine TINTORETTO, the Death of Goliali ; a Dead Christ (a bust picture, half life-size) by one of the CAR ACCI —an exquisitely finished painting, the aspect of death touchingly beautified by a divine Serenity; and a peasant girl on an ass, by CIIMPI—a sweet little gent by a rare master.
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