The artist as a beggar seated on a bank

Catalogue number: Bartsch 174.

The beggar was not a motif like any other for Rembrandt. His beggars share vital features with his visions of St Joseph, of Christ, and of himself. This implies a more personal and respectful attitude toward the beggar than in earlier art or than in Dutch society. The etchings of beggars were essential in Rembrandt's formative years as an artist. The way he imagined the beggar is inextricable from the way he imagined himself and the way he imagined Christ.