Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn

Watermark: none.
This drawing and "Two Mummers on Horseback" (inv. I, 201) are two of four sheets that may record historical figures from a pageant witnessed by Rembrandt at The Hague in 1638. The other two are in the British Museum. All four drawings feature a complex combination of media and technique, with red and yellow chalks, subtle tonal shifts from brown to reddish brown, and an impressively coarse line. The subject corresponds to descriptions of African musicians made at the time of the event.
This is part of a small group of drawings in which Rembrandt experimented with an elaborate technique that included pen, ink, wash, and a rare yellow chalk. The procession of musicians in old-fashioned costumes may have been celebrating a prominent wedding or festivity. The liveliness of the figures suggests Rembrandt drew them from life in the street, though it is equally possible that he recorded them in the studio by placing models in front of a mirror. The inflated cheeks of the musician in the foreground typify Rembrandt's powers of observation. -- Exhibition Label, from "Drawn to Greatness: Master Drawings from the Thaw Collection"