Supper at Emmaus

Workshop of Rembrandt, 1648

Download free · 3000 × 2404px View on a wall Edit

Artist: Rembrandt (Dutch)
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 89.5 × 111.5 cm
Museum: SMK – National Gallery of Denmark
Rights: Public Domain Mark

The Bible relates the story of two disciples who travelled from Jerusalem to the town of Emmaus following the death of Christ. During their travels they meet a stranger who joins them. When arriving at the town they go to an inn where Christ – for it is he – takes the bread, blesses it and breaks it. Only then do the disciples realise that the stranger is Christ risen from the dead. The divinity of Christ is revealed This scene shows the moment where the divinity of Christ is revealed to the disciples (Luke 24: 30-31). Their fright and reverence contrast sharply with the calm and serene demeanour of Christ.

The painting's symbolic light With his characteristic use of symbolic light, Rembrandt lets Christ light up the dark space lit by a candle brought in by an unsuspecting kitchen hand. The illusionistic curtain painted in the left-hand side of the picture has been drawn back, accentuating how the scene represents the unveiling of a miracle. The authenticity of the painting The authenticity of this picture has been the object of some debate in recent decades. Many factors indicate that it was painted by assistants in Rembrandt’s workshop on the basis of studies by the master and under his supervision.