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Overview
During his lifetime, Rembrandt's extraordinary skills as a printmaker were the main source of his international fame. Unlike his oil paintings, prints travelled light and were relatively cheap. For this reason, they soon became very popular with collectors not only within, but also beyond the borders of the Netherlands. It also explains why, two centuries later, they were affordable for Bishop Ditlev Monrad, who presented his print collection to the Colonial Museum in 1869: this print came from his collection.
The Old Testament story of Joseph fuelled the imagination of Dutch artists, Rembrandt included, not only for the marvellous exploits of the young leader, but also for the jealousies, deceits and betrayals that mark the complex narrative of his life. The subject was painted, for example, by Rembrandt's sometime studio mate, Jan Lievens (1640s; Joseph and Lieve Guttmann Collection, USA).
The cause of many of those jealousies was the coat of many colors that Joseph's father, Jacob, had presented to him as a sign that he was the favored son. The tragic consequences, when Joseph's brothers turned against him, are described in Genesis 37:12-35. When Joseph, having been sent by his father to report on the status of his brothers who were herding sheep, found them in the land of Dothan, his brethren conspired to kill him. However, Reuben, one of the brothers, dissuaded them from committing fratricide and instead they threw Joseph into a pit. Although Reuben intended to rescue Joseph and return him to his father, Joseph was taken to Egypt after the others sold him to passing Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. Reuben, upon discovering that Joseph was missing, then conspired with his brothers to deceive Jacob into believing that Joseph had been eaten by a wild beast. To feign his death they dipped his coat in the blood of a goat, which they then took to the aged patriarch. Seeing the bloody coat, Jacob tore his garments in grief, donned sackcloth, and, taking no comfort in his family's consolations, mourned Joseph's loss.
In his etching, Rembrandt focussed on the immediate news being conveyed to the devasted Jacob, who throws back his head and raises his hands in horror at the sight of the coat. One of the sons, probably Reuben, is acting up the story, while his brother Judah is calmer, feigning concern. His bulky purse betrays the truth behind the deception. Leah, his elderly mother, stands at the doorway, staring open-mouthed, and nervously draws her hands together.
This impression is the first of two states, the only one where Rembrandt exclusively worked on the plate. It is before retouching was applied with a mezzotint rocker. The old woman’s headdress is not yet strengthened and has a non-continuous outline. Te Papa also has in its collection a skilful copy of this etching by an unknown artist, possibly made in Rembrandt's lifetime (1967-0027-7).
References: New Hollstein Dutch 122, 1st of 2 states; Hollstein Dutch 38, 1st of 2 states
See:
The Leiden Collection, https://www.theleidencollection.com/artwork/jacob-shown-josephs-bloody-coat/
Shelley Perlove and Larry Silver, Rembrandt's Faith: Church and Temple in the Dutch Golden Age (Pennsylvania, 2009), pp. 97-98.
Dr Mark Stocker Curator, Historical International Art August 2017
New Hollstein Dutch 122, 1st of 2 states
Hollstein Dutch 38, 1st of 2 states