Danae

A woman rises from her pillows and lifts her hand toward an unseen visitor made of light. Rembrandt painted her, repainted her, and centuries later she survived acid and a knife.

The story behind the painting

Rembrandt van Rijn first completed Danaë in 1636, then returned to it and reworked it significantly, by 1643 at the latest. The subject comes from Greek mythology: Danaë, the mother of Perseus, whom Zeus visited and impregnated in the form of a shower of gold. Rembrandt's wife Saskia was the original model, but during the reworking he changed the face to that of Geertje Dircx, the woman who later became his companion. The canvas is life-sized and has since been considerably cut down. It may have been a picture Rembrandt cherished, and its sheer size may also have made it hard to sell.

What to look for

Danaë lies on a canopied bed, propped on pillows, her body turned toward the light and one arm outstretched as if greeting a presence we cannot see. That arm, along with her head and legs, was repositioned when Rembrandt reworked the picture, so what you see is the result of years of second thoughts. Look for the bracelet at her wrist, the long hair falling to her waist, and the heavy drapery of the bed. The scene glows with the warm, golden light that stands in for the god himself. A signature with a date ending in 6 is hard to read and may not be genuine.

Meaning and intent

Rembrandt does not need to show the god at all. Here the drama is carried by light and by the woman's response: she is presumably shown welcoming Zeus, who came to her as a shower of gold, and her open, outstretched gesture turns an ancient myth into a human moment of anticipation. The changes of face also give the painting a personal layer. It began with Saskia and ended with Geertje, so the canvas quietly records shifts in Rembrandt's own life across the years he worked on it. Life-sized and intimate, it is counted among his most magnificent paintings.

Legacy

Danaë once belonged to the collection of Pierre Crozat and has been in the Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg since the eighteenth century. On 15 June 1985 a visitor, later judged insane, threw sulphuric acid on it and cut it twice with a knife. The worst damage struck Danaë's face, hair, right arm and legs, and the central area dissolved into drips and spots. Restoration began that same day, with conservators rinsing the surface with water, and continued until 1997 in the Hermitage's restoration laboratory. Its survival and painstaking recovery make it one of the most remarkable conservation stories of modern times.

Lo sapevi?

Rembrandt first finished it in 1636 and reworked it by 1643 at the latest.
Saskia was the first model; the face was later changed to that of Geertje Dircx.
It was attacked with acid and a knife in 1985 and restored over twelve years.
It has been in the Hermitage, St Petersburg, since the eighteenth century.

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