The Night Watch

The story

“The Night Watch” is the most famous painting by Rembrandt and one of the most famous paintings in the world. It was painted in 1642, commissioned by the civic guard of Amsterdam, the company of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq. The members of the company paid to be portrayed, and the painting was to hang in their meeting hall.

At that time group portraits showed people lined up in a row as in a photograph. In “The Night Watch” Rembrandt did something entirely new: the company sets off. The captain in black stretches out his hand and gives an order, the lieutenant in pale yellow walks beside him, the drum beats, the dog barks, the musketeers load their guns. Among them runs a little girl in a golden dress, lit by light, with a chicken at her belt, the emblem of the company.

The name “The Night Watch” appeared much later. Over time the varnish darkened and everyone decided that the scene took place at night. After cleaning, it became clear that Rembrandt had painted daytime, and the darkness is simply shadow from which the faces emerge. They say the patrons were unhappy and that the painting ruined his career, but this is a legend that scholars do not confirm.

In 1715 the painting was moved to the Amsterdam town hall and, to fit the wall, it was cut down on all sides. Two figures on the left were lost. Later it was attacked three times, with a knife in 1911 and 1975 and with acid in 1990, and each time it was restored.

Today “The Night Watch” is in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, in a gallery built especially for it. It is enormous, nearly 4 by 4.5 metres. There is always a crowd in front of it, and Rembrandt seems to have stopped forever the moment when the people step forward.