Christ before Pilate
1601 to 1650
Medium
brush and brown ink on brown paper
Dimensions
overall: 8.8 x 11.7 cm (3 7/16 x 4 5/8 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Widener Collection
Accession Number
1942.9.663
Art Historical Context
Behold *Christ before Pilate*, a captivating drawing attributed to an imitator of the masterful Rembrandt van Rijn, created sometime between 1601 and 1650. This intimate biblical scene captures the tense moment from the Passion of Christ, where Pontius Pilate questions Jesus amid a crowd of onlookers. Rendered in brush and brown ink on brown paper—a technique favored in the Dutch Golden Age for quick, evocative sketches—the work measures just 8.8 x 11.7 cm, inviting close inspection like a whispered secret from the 17th century. Rembrandt's influence shines through in the dramatic composition...