The J. Paul Getty Museum

A Young Scholar and his Tutor

Object Details

Title:

A Young Scholar and his Tutor

Artist/Maker:

Workshop of Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (Dutch, 1606 - 1669)

Culture:

Dutch

Date:

about 1629–1630

Medium:

Oil on canvas

Object Number:

84.PA.570

Dimensions:

104.6 × 88.9 cm (41 3/16 × 35 in.)

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Object Description

An elderly man in a subdued green velvet cloak trimmed in fur instructs a boy wearing a lavish Eastern costume. The artist presents a study in contrasts: the student's youthfulness, his smooth complexion, lavish garments, and quest for knowledge are balanced against the learned man's aged, weathered face as he imparts wisdom. A warm light that accentuates the tonal contrasts and rich textures of the velvet and satin fabrics bathes the two figures. Light catches and shimmers off the precious stones of the boy's gold jewelry. Fine, precise brushstrokes enhance the overall impression of softness.

The subjects are presented in the guise of historical personages, possibly portraying the youthful Old Testament prophet Samuel with his instructor Eli. The use of lavish costumes and light and dark contrasts reveal the influence of Rembrandt.

Provenance
Provenance
possibly about 1631 - 1662

Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia, 1596 - 1662, by bequest to William Craven, 1662.
Source: Pennant, Thomas. The Journey from Chester to London (Dublin: Luke White, 1783).

1662 - 1697

William Craven, first earl of Craven, 1608 - 1697 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1697.

1697 - 1711

William Craven, second baron Craven, 1668 - 1711 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1711.

1711 - 1739

William Craven, third baron Craven, 1700 - 1739 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to Fulwar Craven, 1739.

1739 - 1764

Fulwar Craven, fourth baron Craven, died 1764 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1764.

1764 - 1769

William Craven, fifth baron Craven, 1705 - 1769 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1769.

1769 - 1791

William Craven, sixth baron Craven, 1738 - 1791 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1791.

1791 - 1825

William Craven, first earl of Craven, 1770 - 1825 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William Craven, 1825.

1825 - 1866

William Craven, second earl of Craven, 1809 - 1866 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to George Grimston Craven, 1866.

1866 - 1883

George Grimston Craven, third earl of Craven, 1841 - 1883 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to William George Robert Craven, 1883.

1883 - 1921

William George Robert Craven, fourth earl of Craven, 1868 - 1921 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), by inheritance to his wife, Cornelia Martin Craven, 1921.

1921 - 1961

Cornelia Martin Craven, countess Craven, 1877 - 1961 (Combe Abbey, Warwickshire, England; Ashdown Park, Berkshire, England; Hamstead Marshall, Berkshire, England), upon her death, held in trust by the Trustee of Cornelia Martin Craven.

1961 - 1968

Trustee of Cornelia Martin Craven [sold, Craven sale, Sotheby's, London, November 27, 1968, lot 87 (companion to lot 88), to Herman Shickman Gallery.]

1968 - about 1968

H. Shickman Gallery (New York, New York), sold to Christian Humann, about 1968.

about 1968 - 1982

Christian Humann (New York, New York), by inheritance to Edgar Humann, 1982.

1982 - 1984

Edgar Humann (New York, New York), sold to Herman Shickman Gallery, 1984.

1984

H. Shickman Gallery (New York, New York), sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 1984.

Exhibitions
Exhibitions
Society of Arts Exhibition, 1831 (1831)
  • Birmingham Society of Arts (Birmingham), 1831
Society of Arts Exhibition, 1833 (1833)
  • Birmingham Society of Arts (Birmingham), 1833
Pictures by Italian, Spanish, Flemish, Dutch, and French Masters (June 1839)
  • British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom (London), 1839
Coventry Exhibition, 1840 (1840)
  • Coventry Mechanics' Institution (Coventry), 1840
Society of Arts Exhibition, 1842 (1842)
  • Birmingham Society of Arts (Birmingham), 1842
Art Treasures of the United Kingdom Collected at Manchester in 1857 (May 5 to October 17, 1857)
  • Art Treasures Palace (Manchester), May 5 to October 17, 1857
Dutch Pictures 1450 - 1750 (November 22, 1952 to March 1, 1953)
  • Royal Academy of Arts (London), November 22, 1952 to March 1, 1953
Rembrandt after Three Hundred Years: An Exhibition of Rembrandt and his Followers (October 25, 1969 to April 5, 1970)
  • The Art Institute of Chicago, October 25 to December 7, 1969
  • The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Minneapolis), December 22, 1969 to February 1, 1970
  • The Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit), February 24 to April 5, 1970
Leselust: Niederländische Malerei von Rembrandt bis Vermeer (September 24, 1993 to January 2, 1994)
  • Schirn Kunsthalle (Frankfurt), September 24, 1993 to January 2, 1994
The Mystery of the Young Rembrandt (November 3, 2001 to May 26, 2002)
  • Staatliche Museen (Kassel), November 3, 2001 to February 3, 2002
  • Museum Het Rembrandthuis (Amsterdam), February 20 to May 26, 2002
Bibliography
Bibliography

Pennant, Thomas. The Journey from Chester to London (Dublin: Luke White, 1783), p. 189.

The Beauties of England and Wales, or Original Delineations, Topographical, Historical, and Descriptive of Each County. 18 vols. (London: Thomas Maiden, 1814), vol. 15, p. 56.

Catalogue of Pictures Chiefly by the Old Masters of the Italian, Spanish and Flemish Schools, exh. cat. (Birmingham: Birmingham Society of the Arts, with Thomas Knott, 1831), p. 18, no. 64.

Catalogue of Pictures, Chiefly by the Old Masters of the Italian, Flemish, and Spanish Schools, exh. cat. (Birmingham: Birmingham Society of Arts, with Joseph Webb, 1833), pp. 17-18, no. 134.

Catalogue of the Exhibition at the Coventry Mechanics' Institution, exh. cat. (Coventry: 1840), p. 4, no. 33.

Catalogue of Pictures by Deceased Masters of the Italian, Spanish, Flemish, and English Schools, exh. cat. (Birmingham: Birmingham Society of the Arts, with Alfred Allen, 1842), p. 10, no. 54.

Pictures by Italian, Spanish, Flemish, Dutch, French and English Masters, exh. cat. (London: William Nicol, with The British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom, 1853), p. 9, no. 47.

Catalogue of the Art Treasures of the United Kingdom, Collected at Manchester in 1857, exh. cat. (London: Bradbury and Evans, 1857), p. 65, no. 919.

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