Rembrandt van Rijn and Frans Hals were the two greatest portraitists in the Dutch Republic during the seventeenth century. Unlike Hals in Haarlem, Rembrandt in his native Leiden and, from 1632 onward, in the great commercial city of Amsterdam, was also a highly original painter of historical subjects, meaning religious and mythological pictures as well as historical themes in the modern sense. The Man in Oriental Costume ("The Noble Slav"), of 1632, the eccentric Bellona, of 1633, the famous Aristotle with a Bust of Homer, of 1653, and Flora, of about 1654, reveal Rembrandt's ability to infuse remote and imaginary characters with individual personalities and a sense of humanity rarely encountered in works by his contemporaries.
Note: This gallery is temporarily closed to the public due to a construction project. Visitors to the Museum may inquire at the Information Desk in the Great Hall for more information.
