#rembrandt-authentication

#rembrandt-authentication

The painting of Zacharias is worth a close look, not only because it is preciously crafted but also because it is an example of the limitations of authentication. Hidden from the public eye for over 60 years, the painting was previously misattributed to an anonymous pupil of the Dutch Master through limited analysis of photographic reproductions rather than first-hand examination.

Analysis of the wood panel, style, changes made to the details while the work was being painted, the signature applied while the painting was still wet and the overall high quality confirm that it was an autograph work by Rembrandt himself, painted when he was 27 years old and had just moved to Amsterdam.