Jacob de Gheyn III (painting)

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Jacob de Gheyn III
Rembrandt, circa 1632
Oil on oak
29.9 × 24.9 cm, 11.8 × 9.8 in
Dulwich Picture Gallery, London

Jacob de Gheyn III, also known as Jacob III de Gheyn, is a 1632 oil painting by Rembrandt. The portrait is of Dutch engraver Jacob de Gheyn III and is part of a pair. The other piece is a portrait of de Gheyn's friend Maurits Huygens, wearing similar clothing (ruffs and black doublets) and facing the opposite direction.[1]

The painting is smaller than most of Rembrandt's works, measuring only 29.9 by 24.9 centimetres (11.8 by 9.8 inches). This is one factor that has contributed to the numerous thefts of the work.

[edit] The commission

Huygens and de Gheyn had commissioned Rembrandt to paint them in identical formats and he did so upon the same oak panel.[2] The friends had agreed that the first of them to die would receive the painting owned by the other, as evidenced by inscriptions on the their reverse.[3] They were reunited when de Gheyn died.[4] Rembrandt used the same piece of wood for a third painting, a self-portrait, and all three pieces were displayed in London's Dulwich Picture Gallery, which owns the painting of de Gheyn, in 2006.[2]

[edit] Thefts

The painting has been given the title "takeaway Rembrandt" as it has been stolen four times since 1966 – the most recorded of any painting.[5][6][7]

Between 14 August 1981 and 3 September 1981 the painting was taken from Dulwich Picture Gallery and retrieved when police arrested four men in a taxi who had the painting with them.[8] A little under two years later a burglar smashed a skylight and descended through it into the art gallery, using a crowbar to remove the painting from the wall. The police arrived within three minutes but were too late to apprehend the thief.[9] The painting was missing for three years, eventually being found on 8 October 1986 in a luggage rack at the train station of a British army garrison in Münster, Germany.[10]

The other two times, the painting was found underneath a bench in a graveyard in Streatham, on the back of a bicycle.[6][11] Each time the painting has been returned anonymously with nobody ever being charged for its disappearance.[6][7]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Phelan, Mary. Atyfacts. 2006. "Rembrandt & Co: Dealing in Masterpieces". Accessed 3 September 2006.
  2. ^ a b Dulwich Picture Gallery. 2006. "Three Rembrandts Reunited" (Word document). Accessed 3 September 2006.
  3. ^ Graham-Nixon, Andrew. The Telegraph. 11 June 2006. "[1]". Accessed 6 September 2006.
  4. ^ Dulwich Picture Gallery. "Jacob III de Gheyn". Accessed 3 September 2006.
  5. ^ Alberge, Dalya. The Times. 23 August 2004. "Mystery, intrigue and stolen paintings". Accessed 3 September 2006.
  6. ^ a b c Peek, Laura. 29 April 2003. "'Takeaway Rembrandt' is most stolen painting". Accessed 3 September 2006.
  7. ^ a b Guinness World Records. "Most Stolen Painting". Accessed 4 September 2006.
  8. ^ New York Times Archives. 3 September 1981. "Around The World; Painting by Rembrandt Is Recovered in London". Accessed 3 September 2006.
  9. ^ Time. 4 July 1983. "Stop and Think: Supercrooks do brisk business". Accessed 6 September 2006.
  10. ^ San Hose Mercury News. 10 October 1986. "3 Years Later, Oft-Stolen Rembrandt Is Back. Accessed 6 September 2006.
  11. ^ Kennedy, Maev. The Guardian. 18 May 2001. "Artful conman preys on wealthy". Accessed 3 September 2006.