Rembrandt Painting Once Thought a Forgery Proven Authentic After 101 Years

Revealed After Two Years of Investigation... Analyzed Using Dendrochronology and Other Methods
Many Rembrandt Works Still Not Free from Forgery Controversy

The Rembrandt oil painting "Raising Jesus on the Cross," authenticated as genuine after 101 years. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Bang Je-il] The work of Rembrandt, a representative 17th-century Dutch painter, has been recognized as authentic for the first time in 101 years, shedding its stigma as a forgery, according to reports by the British newspaper The Times and AFP on the 3rd (local time).

The painting recognized as authentic after 101 years is the oil painting "Raising Jesus on the Cross," which had been stored in the warehouse of the Bredius Museum in The Hague, Netherlands. Until now, it had been classified as a forgery of the 1633 work displayed at a museum in Munich, Germany. The painting in question was purchased in 1921 by Abraham Bredius (1855?1946), an art historian and founder of the Bredius Museum. At the time, Bredius believed this painting was an early work of Rembrandt's 1633 piece in Munich, but it was ultimately judged a forgery in 1969.

However, recently, a curator at the Bredius Museum found the painting in the warehouse and re-examined it, leading to its evaluation as a genuine Rembrandt work and recognition as authentic after 101 years. The curator said, "The moment I saw the work, there was no doubt," adding, "I had a strong feeling that it was a real Rembrandt." The curator also added, "As soon as we carefully restored the painting, everyone agreed that this was a genuine Rembrandt piece."

The work was analyzed over two years using dendrochronology and other methods before being recognized as authentic this time. The painting is estimated to have been created between 1642 and 1645 and is evaluated to contain Rembrandt's distinctive brushwork. The museum explained, "Every painter has unique traces," and "Rembrandt had a distinctive brushstroke."

However, despite this distinctive brushwork, many of Rembrandt's works are still not free from forgery controversies. For example, in 2008, a self-portrait titled "Smiling Rembrandt," once identified as a forgery by an auction house and valued at about ?1,500 (approximately 3.1 million KRW), was later confirmed as an authentic piece worth up to $40 million (approximately 40 billion KRW).

Also, the work titled "Head of a Bearded Man" has been left in a museum's underground storage for decades after the "Rembrandt Research Project," the most authoritative on Rembrandt's works, declared it a forgery in 1981. Ann van Camp, who joined the Ashmolean Museum as a Northern European art curator in 2015, judged that the postcard-sized "Head of a Bearded Man" has typical characteristics of Rembrandt's work and may not be a forgery. An investigation into its authenticity is currently underway.

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