REMBRANDT H. van Rijn (1606 1669) - "The Hundred Guilder Print". c.1648. Original etching enhanced with drypoint and burin. Ref: Bartsch, no. 74. New Hollstein, n°239. Proof of the 2nd state of 4, before the plate was reworked by Baillie, on watermarked laid paper (Strasbourg Lily & Jesus countermark, IHS with initial under the H in a circle (close Ash-Fletcher, n°25.B)). Composition realized in nearly 10 years and considered Rembrandt's masterpiece. The title of this print comes from the story that Rembrandt exchanged it for a complete set of prints by the Italian master Marcantonio Raimondi, rather than pay him the 100 florins demanded, a very high sum at the time. Another theory suggests that the print was a gift from Rembrandt to his friend, the art dealer Jan Pietersz Zomer, which would explain why it is not dated or signed. "It is the first major work in which light and shadow achieve such expressive power and in which the inner life is expressed so strongly through a new technical mastery. In this respect, "The Hundred Guilder Coin", arbitrarily dated 1649, paves the way for the works of Rembrandt's last period as an engraver. But it is also a pivotal work representing the quintessence of an entire decade's work, reflecting all of the artist's aspirations, all of his accomplishments." (Catalogue of the exhibition at the Musée du Petit Palais, 1896). 27.8 x 39.4 cm. Condition B/C (cut to the subject and numerous old restorations).