STUDIO OF REMBRANDT, CIRCA 1640 | King Uzziah

Possibly Louis XV of France (1715–1774); 
By whom given to Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765);
By whom given to Gérard Binet (1712–1780), 1er Valet de Chambre de feu Monseigneur le Dauphin (all the above according to the d’Hauteville catalogue, below);
Pierre-Nicolas Caulet d’Hauteville (d. 1775), Paris (his name inscribed on the reverse);
His sale, Paris, Joullain, 25 April 1774, lot 55 (as Rembrandt), where unsold;
Pieter Frans Van Schorel (1716–1778), Lord of Wilryck, Mayor of Antwerp, Antwerp;
His sale, Antwerp, 7 June 1774, lot 46 (as Rembrandt), for 185 Guilders;
Jacques Albert Dormer de Baumiscourt (d. 1776), Seigneur de Beez, Antwerp;
His posthumous sale, Antwerp, Bincken, 27 May 1777, lot 132 (as Rembrandt), for 68 Guilders to Deroy;
Probably Harry Jeddere-Fisher (1885-1934), Dormansland, Sussex;
Thence by descent.

B. Haak, P.J.J. van Thiel and E. van de Wetering et al., A Corpus of Rembrandt Paintings, vol. III, Dordrecht, Boston and London 1989, p. 296, under cat. no. A128, copy no. 3.

The following condition report is provided by Henry Gentle who is an external specialist and not an employee of Sotheby's:Studio of RembrandtPortrait of a turbaned gentlemanOil on panel, in a modern dark wood effect frame in good conditionThe oak panel has two vertical joins, three planks.The panel is in a very good state of preservation, flat and stable.A small vertical split, approximately 6 cm long, bottom right , has been reinforced and there is evidence of minor wood worm damage down one of the joins.The paint layer is in a very good preserved state. The vertical joins are hardly discernible through the surface. There is very slight movement down 5cm to the top of the right hand join.Under raking light the sketchy bravura technique of the artist is apparent within the preserved original textured paint. One or two raised but stable areas of paint can also be discerned. Up close , small filigree of pale shrinkage cracks are discernible and the pale ground layer is visible.This pale ground layer is also seen through areas of naturally thinned paint, i.e. the shadows of the sitter's face and some areas of the background.The texture of the raised paint impasto to the gold clasp, turban, sleeves and skin tones are in good original condition.Removal of a degraded varnish would improve the overall tonality.Little previous conservation intervention is discernible to this painting.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This grand and striking portrait of a man wearing a white turban and rich black, fur-lined cloak, clasping his hands and turned, commandingly towards the viewer, has been in the possession of the family of its current owners for at least 100 years. Untraced in recent critical literature, its early provenance is believed to go back to the French Royal Collection of the 18th century. The painting is a version of Rembrandt’s signed and dated work, bought by the 3rd Duke of Devonshire in 1742, which was recorded in Devonshire House, London in circa 1761 and has been at Chatsworth since the mid-1830s.Orientalised subjects form an integral part of Rembrandt’s œuvre, appearing in his paintings throughout his life – a preoccupation that was probably first inspired by his teacher, Pieter Lastman (1583–1633), and which would in turn influence his contemporaries, such as Jan Lievens. Rembrandt painted the costume and settings of the Orient not only in order to ground the subjects historically – particularly in Old Testament scenes – but more significantly for the way in which he was able to delight in the representation of the fabrics and accessories.

Here, the complicated knots of the yellow-and-white-striped turban, held in place with a jeweled, gold brooch, are contrasted with the dark fur of the man’s wide collar, which is itself fastened with an elaborate gold clasp, decorated with gems, pearls and a central medallion showing a man in profile, likewise wearing a turban. Beyond the protagonist a chamber is visible, lit from the left through a window, with a chair and draped table, upon which stands an open book. Behind this is a column, around which a golden snake twists itself, with a leonine mask at the capital.

It is a painting that has perennially confounded scholars as to its subject. Described variously as a man in oriental costume or a rabbi, and even as a portrait historié of Rembrandt’s own father, the figure has also been identified as Paracelsus, Renaissance physician and astrologer, as well as several Old Testament figures, including Moses and Aaron. In 1986, Christian Tümpel associated the figure with Jacob’s son, the judge Dan – one of the twelve patriarchs – based on a depiction of Dan in a series of prints by Jacques de Gheyn II, after Karel van Mander, showing him with the attribute of a snake.¹ This figure, however, bears none of the traditional attributes of a judge, such as a rodd (which Dan is shown holding in the de Gheyn print).

The subject with which the work is most commonly associated – King Uzziah – was identified by Dr Robert Eisler in 1948. The wringing of his hands and the rather patchy appearance of the man’s skin, depicted in Rembrandt’s original work and in this version, correspond with the story of Uzziah, who is related in 2 Chronicles 26: 16-20 as illicitly attempting to burn incense in the Temple, whereupon he is struck with leprosy. However, it must also be noted that notwithstanding the rich garb, expression and countenance of the man, the interior in the background of the painting would not appear to resemble that of the Temple in Jerusalem (which, furthermore, Rembrandt depicted on several occasions). Indeed, the interior bears much comparison to that in a painting ascribed to Ferdinand Bol, showing a man similarly dressed in eastern costume, behind which a sort of study can be seen, invariably described as a ‘Portrait of a philosopher.’²

Rembrandt’s work at Chatsworth is signed and dated with digits that have been read both as ‘1635’ and ‘1639.’ Most recently, the Rembrandt Research Project has, based on stylistic comparison of execution and palette with other works of the middle- to late-1630s, dated the painting to circa 1640. Furthermore, the Chatsworth painting is executed on the highly unusual support of poplar panel (rather than oak, like the present, uncradled panel), as are a small group of works dating to the end of the 1630s, when it is known that Rembrandt acquired and used a batch of such panels – almost unheard of in other Northern works of this date. Several versions of the Chatsworth painting exist, testament to the popularity of Rembrandt’s original work, among which the present work must count among the earliest examples.

A Note on the Provenance

The description in the earliest recorded sale of this painting in 1774 reads: ‘[…] il a appartenu à M. Binet, premier Valet de Chambre de feu Mgr. le Dauphin, à que le Roi l’avoit donné’. Gérard Binet (1712–1780) served as Valet de Chambre for Louis XV’s son, the Dauphin, Louis de France (1729–1765), as had his father, Georges-René Binet (1688–1741), before him.

Hofstede de Groot records that there are numerous versions of the Chatsworth painting, dating right into the eighteenth century. He lists seven contemporary works, all but one in public collections (Berlin, Dresden, Emden, Turin, Dessau and Lisbon).³ The seventh painting is that formerly in the collection of Viscount Powerscourt, of very similar dimensions to the present work, which was exhibited at least twice alongside the Chatsworth painting in exhibitions at the Royal Academy, London, in 1878 and 1899, as Rembrandt. It was sold anonymously in a sale at Christie’s, London, 9 July 1904, lot 119. That painting has been tentatively associated with the work that is now in the collection of Lord Margadale, Tisbury, Wiltshire. It is most likely that the present work was acquired at around this time or a generation earlier in the 19th century, when it entered the family of the present owner, descended from Richard Colley Wellesley (1760-1842), 1st Marquess Wellesley, later Viscount Wellesley, The Earl of Mornington.

¹ C. Tümpel and A. Tümpel, Rembrandt, Amsterdam 1986, p. 187, cat. no. 77.

² Sold London, Christie’s, 13 December 1985, lot 79.

³ C. Hofstede de Groot, A catalogue raisonné…, London 1916, pp. 197–98, under cat. no. 346.