Experts Confirm Authenticity of Rembrandt’s Self-Portrait

LONDON. After much research and analysis, British experts finally confirmed the authenticity of the self-portrait of Rembrandt, donated in 2010 to the National Trust of Great Britain (National Trust).

Eight months of testing and thorough scientific analysis left no doubt about the authorship of the painting, the cost of which is estimated at 30 million pounds (37 million euros).

The painting, which was found in the home of the famous pirate, explorer and slave trader of the 16th century Francis Drake, can now be seen in the walls of the Abbey of Buckland, in the English county of Devon in southwestern Great Britain.

40 years of authorship of the canvas was in doubt. The British National Trust, an organization that monitors England’s cultural heritage, got the job four years ago as a gift from Lady Heirs Samuel of Wych Cross, whose husband, philanthropist Lord Samuel Cross Cross, has collected many paintings over his life most of which are now in the Mansion gallery House of London.

Four decades ago, a well-known specialist in the works of the Dutch artist Horst Gerson (Horst Gerson), together with the Rembrandt Research Project (a research project dedicated to the work of Rembrandt) came to the conclusion that the portrait belongs to the brush of one of the students of the great painter. However, later, another specialist in the work of Rembrandt, Ernst van de Wetering (Ernst van de Wetering), analyzing the evolution of the artist’s style and after conducting a series of tests and scientific research, again attributed the canvas to the works of the famous master.

Over the past eight months, the painting has again been submitted for research at the Hamilton Kerr Institute in Cambridge, which finally confirmed its authenticity.

The work cannot be sold, and will be exhibited by the National Fund in various galleries, for open access to the masterpiece of the public.

Christine Slottvedd Kimbriel, curator of the art department at the Kerr Institute, explained that the self-portrait passed a series of tests, including high-magnification visual examinations, X-ray and infrared examinations.

The canvas was neatly cleaned from several layers of the old yellowed varnish applied to the surface of the painting much later than its creation, revealing to the audience the true colors and the true style of the great painter.

Rembrandt Van Rijn (1606-1669) was one of the most prolific artists who wrote himself. Experts believe that he created from 40 to 50 self-portraits in oil, and he used his body to write about 32 prints and seven drawings.

The self-portrait, now in Buckland Abbey, is dated 1635 and signed by the artist himself, who at that time was 29 years old.

Anna Sidorova © Gallerix.ru