REMBRANDT HARMENSZOON VAN RIJN (DUTCH 1606-1669)
THE THREE TREES (B., HOLL. 212; NEW HOLL. 214; H. 205), 1643
Estimate: £200,000 - £300,000
Auction: 19 March 2025 from 10:00 BST
Description
etching with engraving and drypoint, on laid paper, watermark Foolscap with five-pointed Collar (Hinterding A-a-a), New Hollstein's only state, a brilliant, early impression of this highly important subject, printing very richly and darkly, with intense contrasts and bright highlights, the burr and sulphur tinting in the sky very pronounced, with small margins
Dimensions
the sheet 21.8cm x 28.3cm (8 ½in x 11in)
Provenance
Christiaan Josi (1768-1828), Amsterdam and London (see Lugt 573, without mark); his posthumous sale, Christie's, London, 18-21 March 1829, lot 83 'Most Brilliant Impression' (£12; to Seguier)
William Seguier (1771-1843), London (Lugt 2277), acquired at the above sale, with his pencil signature verso; his posthumous sale, Christie's, London, 29 April - 3 May 1844, lot 431 (£23-12-6; to Hawkins)
John Heywood Hawkins (1803-1877), London and Bignor Park, Sussex, his purchase price inscribed in Greek letters (see Lugt 3023); acquired at the above sale
Probably with Colnaghi & Co., London; acquired from the above
Walter Francis Duke of Buccleuch (1806-1884), London and Dalkeith, Scotland (Lugt 402); probably acquired from the above, with his collection ink mark verso; his posthumous sale, Christie's, London, 19-22 April 1887, lot 1954 ('from the Seguier and Hawkins Collections') (£165; to Meder)
With Louis Gerhard Meder (1848-1924) (of Amsler & Ruthardt), Berlin; presumably acquired on behalf of the below
Sammlung der Königlichen Museen, Berlin, dated 1887 (Lugt 1610); presumably acquired from the above; with their de-accession stamp verso (Lugt 2482); their sale, Amsler & Ruthardt, Berlin, 6 March 1899 (and following days), lot 1600 ('Die Gewitterlandschaft mit den drei Bäumen. S. 212. Des Meisters Hauptblatt unter den Landschaften; das prachtvolle Exemplar der Sammlung Buccleuch, auf Schellenkappenpapier und mit 3 mm Rand ringsum. Exemplare von der Schönheit und vortrefflichen Erhaltung des vorliegenden sind von höchster Seltenheit und Kostbarkeit.')
Dr Julius Elischer von Thurzóbánya (1846-1909), Budapest (Lugt 824, stamped twice); probably acquired at the above sale
With Kennedy Galleries, New York, with their stock number a48042 in pencil verso
Robert Woods Bliss (1875-1962) and Mildred Barnes Bliss (1879–1969), Dumbarton Oaks, Washington, D.C. (Lugt 2004a); presumably acquired from the above
Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington D.C; presumably part of the donation from the above
With R. M. Light & Co., Santa Barbara, California
Private Collection, acquired from the above on 31 January 1980; then by descent
Christie's London, Old Master Prints, 9 December 2021, lot 126
Acquired from the above by Hugo Burge
Footnote
Literature: Bartsch, Hollstein 212; New Hollstein 214; Hind 205
Cynthia P. Schneider, Rembrandt’s Landscapes – Drawings and Prints, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (exh. cat.), 1990, no. 75, pp. 240-42 (another impression illustrated)
Erik Hinterding, Rembrandt Etchings from the Frits Lugt Collection, Fondation Custodia, Paris, 2008, no. 167, pp. 390-93 (another impression illustrated)
Nicholas Stogdon, A Descriptive Catalogue of the Etchings by Rembrandt in a Private Collection, Switzerland, privately printed, 2011, no. 93, pp. 158-9 (another impression illustrated)
The Three Trees is Rembrandt’s largest and most elaborate landscape etching and is considered a masterpiece within his oeuvre.
Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) is generally considered one of the greatest artists of all time and an icon of the Dutch Golden Age. Intensely prolific and working across painting, drawing and printmaking, his work is characterised by exceptional skills of observation which brought a consistent naturalism to his practice, even as his style evolved. Rembrandt achieved remarkable renown in his lifetime, due in part to the dissemination of his imagery through prints which was key to building a wider artistic reputation in seventeenth-century Europe. His unprecedented success is demonstrated by the nickname acquired by one of his most successful figure compositions Christ Healing the Sick, which was dubbed ‘The Hundred Guilder Print’ for having sold for this extravagant sum, possibly repeatedly, whilst he was alive.
Across his career, Rembrandt produced more than three hundred prints with approximately twenty-six recorded landscape etchings, and is one of the few Western artists whose etchings are as popular as his paintings. He was drawn to etching over the more common method of engraving due to its intimacy and immediacy: the artist is able to draw onto the copper plate with freedom and flexibility and can, with skill, convey rich tone and velvety textures. Unusually for the time, Rembrandt did not just provide designs for skilled engravers to turn into prints but prioritised the immediacy of drawing onto a copper etching plate to create prints by his own hand.
Rembrandt was preoccupied by landscape compositions for two distinct periods. An initial period in the 1630s is characterised by work in oils primarily depicting theatrical views of fantastical landscapes. He then returned to landscape subjects from 1641 until 1653 when he produced hundreds of drawings, most of which are sketches of locations around Amsterdam captured while exploring the city on foot. The Three Trees dates from this period, and although the exact location depicted has not been identified, this amalgamation of Dutch landscape motifs would have been immediately recognisable to his contemporary audience.
The print is a true demonstration of Rembrandt’s technical virtuosity. A symphony of light and shade, the composition is marked by his exquisite attention to detail. The sky, often left blank in his prints, sets the tone here with a combination of marks conveying sweeping clouds of varying densities and a heavy downpour of rain moving across the open landscape. Rembrandt includes a variety of figures, including the fishing couple, the artist, and the lovers, each a familiar trope derived from contemporary Dutch pastoral literature. Within the vast landscape the diminutive figurative components are deliberately difficult to discern, emphasising the dominance of nature. To create this impressive drama and atmosphere, Rembrandt combined techniques including various depths of etched lines, drypoint, engraving and speckled tone through sulphur tinting. They weave together to create a rich, luminous surface for a composition that is dramatic and poetic, revealing an artist at the height of his powers.
The Three Trees has been subject to extensive academic research and consideration. Apart from its technical achievements, scholars have explored the meaning behind the composition. It has been suggested that the titular trees could represent the three crosses present at Christ’s crucifixion, or the Holy Trinity. There have been debates over the weather conditions depicted and whether the diagonal lines on the left-hand side are representative of rain (the most commonly-held view) or breakthrough sunlight. It has also been put forth that the trees could represent strength in the face of adversity as they stand up to the approaching storm, inviting a nationalistic interpretation of Dutch strength over Spanish rule.
The mystery and multiplicity of meaning and interpretation only adds to the richness of the work. Princeton University’s Curator of Prints and Drawings, Laura Giles, posits that ‘beyond its multiplicity of meanings and major influence on subsequent landscape artists, including Thomas Gainsborough and J. M. W. Turner, Rembrandt’s The Three Trees offers a compelling universality in its extraordinary evocation of an ephemeral moment in nature.’ (Princeton University Art Museum, https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/story/rembrandts-three-trees, accessed 30 January 2025). It is no surprise then, that this small and striking work has continued to compel and intrigue us for over three hundred years.
This exquisite example of Rembrandt’s The Three Trees was acquired by Hugo Burge in 2021. Hugo had an eye for exceptional quality in art and craft and so was drawn to it immediately. It also appealed due to his great love of trees, which had grown with the acquisition of the Marchmont Estate and it being home to some beautiful and ancient specimens. Hugo had a vision to create an important collection of art on the theme of the tree, as a particular collecting strand within his wider interests. This major acquisition, alongside further purchases and commissions celebrating the subject was to become a central part of his important collection of fine art and craft.