Most people think of Rembrandt foremost as a painter but if Rembrandt never picked up a brush and toiled only as a printmaker he’d still stride Olympus hand-in-hand with Apollo; Rembrandt’s virtuoso oeuvre of etchings vouchsafe Rembrandt’s sui generis mastery of the craft and towers as a singular achievement in the history of art if not the apotheosis.
Rummaging through a couple boxes in my office I happened upon a set of books I have not looked at in maybe seven years, namely, The New Hollstein Dutch & Flemish Etchings, Engravings and Woodcuts 1450-1700: Rembrandt Volumes I-V and I thought maybe it would be nice to share the books with readers not familiar with the books who hopefully may get the books for the readers’ lifetime pleasure.
The books are smallish which is a plus for the space-conscious like myself (art books can tend to the ginormous); the price not so much…but what price bliss? I think each volume at present (2025) is 570 euros (when I purchased the books (2014 maybe) each volume was 465 euros and my receipt notes an additional 348 euros discount for the set of five volumes (I did not get VI-VII).
From the publisher:
Volumes I-II: text describing in detail the 314 prints (with lots and lots of new states and state changes), their copies, copper-plate and watermark references, richly illustrated with details to clarify the state changes;
Volumes III-V: plates illustrating all the states [prints] in full (where possible in true size);
Note: there are volumes VI-VII (copies after Rembrandt’s prints) but that was not of interest to me.
A detailed review of the book(s) by Robert Fucci and Jan Piet Filedt Kok can be found in Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art (37:2, 2014, 141-149); the review concludes…
…the seven-volume paper edition of NHD [New Hollstein Dutch and Flemish], Rembrandt will be indispensable for anyone interested in Rembrandt’s etchings, as well as long afterwards for the pleasure of browsing in the volumes of plates.
…anyone interested in The New Hollstein Dutch and Flemish, Rembrandt is encouraged to seek out the full review.
Clearly looking at a Rembrandt print in person is a treat if not awe-striking but having all of Rembrandt’s prints at arms-length is a quiet pleasure on a winter’s evening…it’s risky taking art counsel from a philistine bumpkin like myself (caveat lector) but I recommend the books to anyone that enjoys prints and in particular Rembrandt.
Note: the enclosed pictures are scans from the book(s).