The oil painting “The Raising of the Cross” turned out to be an authentic work by Rembrandt. The discovery was made after the restoration by art historian Jeroen Gilteij. The painting was purchased in 1921 by the collector Abraham Bredius, with whose legacy the museum was created. The art critic thought he had purchased a work by Rembrandt van Rijn.
In 1969, however, it was determined that it was not painted by the 17th-century artist. Since then, it has been considered the work of an imitator: a copy of Rembrandt’s famous canvas, “The Raising of the Cross”, found in Munich, BNT recalls.
Art critic Gilteij stumbled upon the oil painting in the museum storage while he was working on a book on the work of the great Dutch master. “When I saw this work, I had no doubts. I had the feeling that it was a real Rembrandt,” he says.
The painting was cleaned and examined with modern equipment at the Rijksmuseum. The conclusion is emphatic: “Although it is a sloppy oil sketch on wood, it is a genuine work of a 17th century master,” Giltage explained.
This is confirmed by a dental examination up to date the tree. It shows that the painting was painted between 1642 and 1645, or ten years after the Munich painting. “The raising of the cross” is the focus of an exhibition inaugurated today at the Bredius Museum.
