''The Stoning of Saint Stephen'' is the first signed painting by Dutch artist

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

, made in 1625 at the age of 19. one of his earlier works is an oil painting on a wood panel and currently exhibited at the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon. Rembrandt's Stoning of Saint Stephen (detail)

Rembrandt's Stoning of Saint Stephen (detail)

This work is inspired by the martyrdom of

Saint Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

which is recounted in

Acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...

7. This young deacon in the Christian community of Jerusalem was sentenced to death by stoning. The painting was influenced by the art of

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...

and Adam Elsheimer. It represents the moment when Stephen was stoned outside the city by his many tormentors (about twenty characters), and he utters his last words to Christ as the light around him shows that the heavens are open. The painting is divided into two distinct zones with a diagonal creating an effect of

chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...

: on the left, a man on horseback is in the shadow, and on the right, Stephen and his persecutors are in the light. Saul of Tarsus can be seen seated in the background holding in his lap the coats of the stoners. Some inaccuracies in the drawing can be seen. The character behind Stephen seems to be a self-portrait done into a wider composition, as Spanish painter

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptized June 6, 1599August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He was an individualistic artist of th ...

did in '' Las Meninas''. John Durham suggests that Rembrandt "presents himself as a somewhat alarmed presence, a participant who may be having second thoughts about what was taking place." It is argued that the painting shows as many as seven different variations of Rembrandt's self-portrait.

Rembrandt Etching of Saint Stephen

File:Rembrandt van Rijn, The Stoning of Saint Stephen, 1635, NGA 10046.jpg, alt=, Later stage etching by Rembrandt in the National Gallery of Art.

References

External links

At Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stoning of Saint Stephen Paintings in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon Paintings by Rembrandt 1625 paintings Paintings about death Christian art about death category:Paintings of Saint Stephen Horses in art Torture in art Self-portraits by Rembrandt