The Sow, Rembrandt van Rijn, 1643
etching, h 144mm × w 184mm More details
Rembrandt possibly saw this sow at the Amsterdam pig market. He made a detailed study of the creature and later set it in a narrative context. With rapid lines, he added a butcher preparing for the slaughter, and an excited boy playing with a pig’s bladder. In this, Rembrandt got ahead of himself, for the sow still has her bladder.
