- Museum number
- 1836,0811.240
- Description
-
Allegorical design on the Triple Alliance; between England, Holland and Sweden against France, 1668, a cartouche decorated with fruit and flowers and three coats-of-arms, in the centre Charles II of England, Charles XI of Sweden, and Jan de Wit holding hands, an angel above offering a branch of myrtle, war ships at anchor behind. 1668
Pen and brown ink with brown wash over graphite; framing lines in pen and grey ink.
Verso: see Inscriptions.
No watermark.
- Production date
- 1668
- Dimensions
-
Height: 291 millimetres (chain lines vertical, 23/24mm apart)
-
Width: 228 millimetres
- $Inscriptions
-
- Curator's comments
- Entry from Martin Royalton-Kisch, 'Catalogue of drawings by Rembrandt and his school', 2010, Gerbrand van den Eeckhout, cat. no.16:
The drawing is an allegory concerning the Triple Alliance of Sweden, Great Britain and the Dutch Republic against France, an agreement concluded in 1668, the year in which the drawing was made. On the left is the young King Charles XI of Sweden (b.1655), with Charles II in the centre and the Dutch leader Jan de Wit on the right. An angel hands down to them a divine sprig of myrtle, symbol of conjugal fidelity. Ripe fruit, a purse and three coats-of-arms feature in the border, a frame in the auricular style which resembles some of the ornamental engravings designed by van den Eeckhout.[1] From left to right the arms are those of the Province of Holland, the Six family and the Trip family[2] (which had financial interests in Sweden). The purpose of the drawing is, however, unknown.
See further under cat. no.17 (1856,0712.18).
[1] Cf. in particular plate 12 (and to a lesser extent other plates) in the 'Verscheyde Aerdige Compartementen en Tafels', etched by Pieter Hendricksz. Schut after van den Eeckhout in 1655 (Hollstein, s.v. van den Eeckhout nos 81-92, s.v. Schut, nos.34-45).
[2] Identified by M.D. Haga (oral communication).
LITERATURE :
London, 1915, pp.76-7, no.8, repr. pl.XLI; Paris, 1933, p.21, under no.173; London, 1960[I], p.557, no.1; Sumowski, 1962, p.19 (somewhat pre-Rembrandtist style); Sumowski, 1963, p.102, n.72; Sumowski, 1979, etc., III, 1980, no.664, repr.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
1992, BM, Drawings by Rembrandt and his Circle, not in catalogue
- Condition
- Slightly creased and discoloured; a vertical fold in the centre.
- Associated events
- Associated Event: Triple Alliance 1668
- Acquisition date
- 1836
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- 1836,0811.240