Rembrandt’s ‘The Night Watch’
Rembrandt’s ‘The Night Watch’ stands out from the hundreds of other works by Rembrandt for a number of reasons. The painting is massive at 363 cm by 437 cm, and it has an unusual, effective use of light and shadow. Perhaps what makes it intriguing is the fact that it includes the perception of motion in a painting that would have traditionally been static. The painting gets its name from the dark varnish used to coat the painting and give it the appearance of a night time scene. The dark varnish was removed in the 1940s.
The painting was completed in 1642 and was actually cut down from its original size in 1715 so that it could fit between two columns in the Amsterdam Town Hall. The painting was commissioned by Captain Banning Cocq and seventeen members of his civic militia guards. The shield in the center-right background gives the 18 names of the people in portrait. The large painting was commissioned for 1,600 guilders, which was a massive sum for the period.
When World War II broke out, ‘The Night Watch’ was one of many paintings that people were concerned about being stolen or destroyed. The painting was taken down from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, rolled on a spindle and hidden away. The painting was moved from place to place for two years in order to keep it hidden from the Germans, but it was eventually discovered in 1942.
The Germans took painting and moved to the St. Pietersberg repository in Holland, near the German border. In 1944, a tip brought the MFAA to the repository, where the treasured painting was recovered. It was largely unharmed, though it was beginning to yellow and the colors were muting. The painting was unrolled, mounted on a stretcher, and returned in 1945.