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#433

The Abduction of Ganymede

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606-1669) | Painter

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In this dramatic scene, Rembrandt depicts a boy of about two years of age desperately thrashing about and screaming as he is lifted into the air by an eagle which has grabbed him by his clothing. The boy Ganymede was described in antique literature as a handsome youth. Unlike the artists from antiquity to the Baroque, however, Rembrandt broke with the classical pictorial tradition and transformed the image in a manner that must have been shocking to his contemporaries.

Material & Technique
Oil on canvas
Museum
Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister
Dating
1635
Inventory number
Gal.-Nr. 1558
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