Recumbent Lion, Facing Right
Rembrandt rendered this lion with confident strokes of the pen, without any hesitation. The animal’s head and squinting eyes seem especially effortlessly drawn. He created shadows by smudging the ink with his finger in places. It is clear that Rembrandt was drawing a living animal and was keen to capture what he saw on paper before the lion moved.
c. 1660
Reed pen and brown ink, with some areas deliberately rubbed with a finger or wet brush, on paper toned with a light brown wash; framing line in brown ink
122.0 x 212.0mm
RP-T-1901-A-4524
Image and text courtesy of Rijksmuseum, 2019
Where you'll find this
Rijksmuseum
Permanent collection