Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver
Godefridus Schalcken(Made 1643 – 1706 The Hague)ca. 1675
oil on canvas
39.5 x 49.3 cm
signed or inscribed in red paint, center oflower foreground: “G Schalcken.”
GS-108© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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How to cite
Jansen, Guido. “Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver” (2017). In The Leiden Collection Catalogue, 2nd ed.
Edited by Arthur K. Wheelock Jr. New York, 2017–20. https://theleidencollection.com/artwork/parable-of-thelost-piece-of-silver/ (archived May 2020).
A PDF of every version of this entry is available in this Online Catalogue's Archive, and the Archive ismanaged by a permanent URL. New versions are added only when a substantive change to the narrative
occurs.

After completing his artistic training with Gerrit Dou (1613–75) in Leiden,

Comparative Figures

Godefridus Schalcken returned to Dordrecht and began to paint—in his
teacher’s somewhat stiff manner—genre pieces that usually feature sausagestuffing kitchen maids, Rommel-pot players, and quack doctors. Throughout
the 1670s Schalcken continued to prefer small formats, but he graduallyreplaced the protagonists from the lower echelons of society with handsome
youngsters in costly attire, inhabiting an elegant setting. The manner in which
Schalcken executed these more bourgeois figure paintings was lighter,looser, and livelier than that of his teacher, and with a better sense of color,too. He soon developed an unmistakable idiom of his own that is readily
distinguishable from the work of Dou and that master’s many otherfollowers.

Fig 1. Jan Collaert I after
Ambrosius Francken, The Parableof the Lost Sheep and the Lost
Piece of Silver, 1585, engraving,
203 x 291 mm, The British
Museum, London, Bequeathed by
Sir Hans Sloane, 1753,
1968,1018.1.271, © Trustees of
the British Museum

In the 1680s Schalcken began to concentrate more and more on subjects
typical of history painting, the category ranked most highly by art theorists.
The hierarchy of genres had no doubt been instilled in the artist by his firstteacher, Samuel van Hoogstraten (1627–78), also known for his writings on
art.[1] In any case, Schalcken made sure that even in subjects derived fromancient history or classical mythology, he made intelligent use of his
technical skill in portraying artificial illumination. A good example is his
depiction of the story of the Greek philosopher Diogenes, who carries aburning lamp in broad daylight as he searches the market square for “anhonest man.”[2] For an artist who came from a family of clergymen andtheologians, the Bible was naturally a rewarding source of subjects in which

Fig 2. Godefridus Schalcken, Self© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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artificial lighting—whether by torch, candle, or oil lamp—could be used toadvantage. Denial of Peter, Mocking of Christ, and Parable of the Wise andFoolish Virgins were only three of the nocturnal scenes from the New

Portrait, oil on canvas, 61.3 x 49.8
cm, Fitzwilliam Museum,Cambridge, inv. no. 368, © The
Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

Testament that he rendered in paint.[3]Around 1680–85 Schalcken painted Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver, inwhich he adhered closely to the text of Luke 15:8–10: “Either what woman
having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, andsweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she hathfound it, she calleth her friends and her neighbors together, saying, Rejoicewith me; for I have found the piece which I had lost. Likewise, I say unto you,there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that
repenteth.” As the words of Christ indicate, the parable is always interpreted
in the various exegeses of the different religious groups as the joy of
repentance, with the lamp symbolizing the Word of God. This interpretation
applies in every way to Schalcken’s portrayal, but it is also evident that theFig 3. Godefridus Schalcken, Girlwith a Waffle in Her Hand, 1680s,
oil on canvas, 25.5 x 21.5 cm,
Gemäldegalerie, Kassel, #GK 303

master deliberately sought a text in Holy Scripture that would allow him to put
his exceptional technique to good use.
There is no other known painting of this subject in sixteenth- andseventeenth-century Dutch art.[4] It appears, however, that Schalcken’s
composition was inspired by a sixteenth-century work—a print made in
Flanders. One of the first large series of engravings after biblicaltexts, Thesaurus Veteris et Novi Testamenti, which was published by Gerardde Jode (1509–91) in Antwerp in 1585, contains prints after texts from the
New Testament, including a series of twelve engravings of the parables ofChrist. They can be found in the section titled Thesaurus Novi Testamenti,
which was supplied with a separate title page and probably added to theedition only after 1591.[5] One of the twelve prints, engraved by Jan Collaert I(ca. 1530–81) after a drawing attributed to Ambrosius Francken(1544–1618), portrays Parable of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Piece ofSilver (fig 1).[6] It depicts the Good Shepherd carrying the lost sheep on his

Fig 4. School of Godefridus
Schalcken, Woman Holding a
Candle (after the Parable of the
Lost Piece of Silver), early 19th
century, oil on canvas, 78 x 58.4
cm, The Leiden Collection, NewYorkshoulders, but the left part of the engraving is more important to us because
it portrays two scenes from the Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver. In the left
foreground we see the woman looking for the coin by the light of the lamp
she holds, while the scene in the background shows her displaying therecovered drachma to her friends and neighbors. This print and theThesaurus as a whole were widely disseminated. Claes Jansz Visscher(1587–1652) republished the engravings under the title Theatrum biblicum in
Amsterdam in 1643, with reprints following in 1646 and 1674.[7]© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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Considering that Schalcken was a descendant of a family of clergymen, andone expected to study theology, it is more than likely that one or more of theabove-mentioned editions could be found in the artist’s parental home; if not,then he could easily have seen the edition published in 1674 by Nicolaes
Visscher (1618–79). Nevertheless, by following the biblical text closely,
Schalcken created an extraordinary composition, for the rejoicing on the partof the friends and neighbors upon learning of the recovery of the piece ofsilver is the focal point of the picture, in contrast to the composition of theengraving (fig 1). Thus Schalcken represents the positive quintessence ofthe story, precisely as described in the Bible. In executing the painting, heremained faithful to the small format he preferred, but the richly appointed
interior, the pleasingly light palette, unusual in a nocturnal scene (see, forexample, the light green dress of the girl at the lower right), and the supple
brushwork demonstrate that by this time the painter had completely
abandoned Dou’s idiomatic style and subject matter. A dating to the early
1680s is therefore plausible, additionally supported by the fact that the artist
painted this picture on canvas.[8]Such a dating is corroborated by the man at the far left, the top half of whose
face is concealed in shadow. This man, who looks at the viewer, closely
resembles the painter, who was approximately 40 at the time, so presumably
the master used himself as the model for this personage. Perhaps he did so
because of some connection he felt with this biblical passage, but he may
well have done it to highlight his own accomplishment: the creation of athematically unique painting. It has already been pointed out in anothercontext that Schalcken always gave close consideration to his choice of
subject matter.[9]The painting was first published in the 1783 catalogue compiled by Simon
Causid of the paintings in the collection of the landgraves of Hessen-Kassel.
That catalogue records no fewer than 11 paintings by Schalcken, whichmeans that the Dordrecht-Hague painter was certainly a favorite of thecollector Wilhelm VIII of Hessen-Kassel (1682–1760).[10] This landgrave
spent a long time in the Netherlands as an officer in the States army and also
served as governor of Breda and Maastricht, so his warm feelings toward the
Low Countries and his fondness for Dutch art went hand in hand.[11]Causid’s description of the painting is striking, particularly the information
imparted in the second half: “The woman from the Gospel, who shows her
friends the found coin by the light of a burning lamp. Take note: the figures inthis piece are portraits of the painter himself and his family”[12]; compare with
(fig 2). This notion was reason enough to list the work among the portraits© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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when the first inventory of the Kassel collection was drawn up in 1749. The
presence of the artist at the left seems plausible, but it is highly questionable
whether the other figures should be seen as portraits of family members. The
same catalogue describes Girl with a Waffle in Her Hand (fig 3), for example,
as follows: “Schalcken. This painter’s wife in a blue gown, holding a waffle
in her hand.” But it is evident that Françoisia van Diemen, Schalcken’s wife
since 1679, did not pose for this genre painting.[13]The artist’s presence in Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver was described in
the sale catalogues of both auctions held by Alphonse Giroux in Paris in1816 and 1819, at which the painting was put up for sale after having beenstolen in 1806 along with 47 other major works from the collection in Kassel
by French troops under the command of General Lagrange.[14] The painting
must have acquired a certain fame soon after its arrival in Paris, since highquality copies on panel were offered at auction as early as 1818 and again in
1819 (“It would be difficult to find a copy more similar to the original”).[15] In
fact, a partial copy of this painting now in the Leiden Collection (fig 4) camefrom a French collection.[16] Other copies continue to appear at French
auctions.[17]Remarkably, however, within two generations the subject of the painting had
been completely forgotten. At the Paris sale of the collection of the Utrecht
physician Munnicks van Cleeff in 1864, the painting was interpreted as ascene of seduction and described in a completely different way. Despite thefact that Theodor Demmler exhibited the painting in 1917 as Parable of the
Lost Piece of Silver, it was sold again in 1924 as a seduction scene. Even
Cornelis Hofstede de Groot, the son of a theology professor, did notrecognize the biblical subject when he viewed the pieces for sale at that
auction, no doubt because of Schalcken’s highly original mannerof portrayal.[18]- Guido Jansen, 2017

© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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Endnotes

1. After returning to Dordrecht, Schalcken must have met Samuel van Hoogstraten frequently.
Evidence of this is the fact that both painters signed a document drawn up by the notary
Govert de With on 11 August 1677; Gemeentelijke Archiefdienst, Dordrecht, ONA 20.238, fol.
125.
2. Thierry Beherman, Godfried Schalcken (Paris, 1988), no. 46.
3. Thierry Beherman, Godfried Schalcken (Paris, 1988), nos. 11, 12, and 10.
4. Cf. Andor Pigler, Barokthemen: Eine Auswahl von Verzeichnissen zur Ikonographie des 17.
und 18. Jahrhunderts, 2nd ed., 3 vols. (Budapest, 1974), 1: 366.
5. On this subject, see Hans Mielke, “Antwerpener Graphik in der 2. Hälfte des 16.
Jahrhunderts: Der Thesaurus Veteris et Novi Testamenti des Gerard de Jode (1585) und
seine Künstler,” Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 38 (1975): 29–83, esp. 31, 81, and 82, no. 50.
6. Ann Diels, Arnout Balis, and Marjolein Leesberg, Dutch and Flemish Etchings, Engravings
and Woodcuts 1450–1700; The Collared Dynasty, 8 vols. (Ouderkerk aan den IJssel,
2005–6), 2: 63, no. 292 with ill. The subject of the engraving is attributed to Ambrosius
Francken, and this drawing is preserved in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford; for a
reproduction, see Hans Mielke, “Antwerpener Graphik in der 2. Hälfte des 16. Jahrhunderts:
Der Thesaurus Veteris et Novi Testamenti des Gerard de Jode (1585) und seine Künstler,”
Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 38 (1975): 43–44, ill. 20. Before this, the Swiss artist Urs Graf(ca. 1485–1527/28) had combined the two parables in a small woodcut, which served as anillustration in an edition of William of Auvergne’s Postilla super Epistolas et Evangelia (Basel,
1511). For a reproduction, see the British Museum collection website, registration number:
1927.0614.127.
7. Ann Diels, Arnout Balis, and Marjolein Leesberg, Dutch and Flemish Etchings, Engravings
and Woodcuts 1450–1700; The Collared Dynasty, 8 vols. (Ouderkerk aan den IJssel,
2005–6), 2:63, no. 292. For reprints, see 1: 22, and nos. 13–15. An impression of the second
state of the print is discussed and reproduced in Achim Riethel and Marc Gundel, Dem
Himmel entgegen: Niederländische Bilder des 15. bis 18. Jahrhunderts erzählen die Bibel;
Sammlung Christoph Müller (Exh. cat. Rottenburg, Diözesanmuseum) (Ulm, 2000), 112–13(entry by Barbara Renftle). The print by Collaert was no doubt also known to Domenico Fetti(1588/89–1623), who is the author of the only other seventeenth-century paintings of theparable, both of which he executed during his stay in Mantua around 1620. These works
emphasize the woman’s search with the lamp, the scene Collaert placed so prominently inthe left foreground. In Mantua, the influence of Flemish art was at an all-time high in the first
decades of the seventeenth century, after such artists as Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640)© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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and Frans Pourbus (1569–1622) had been working there for many years. For the two painted
versions by Fetti, see Eduard A. Safarik and Gabriello Milantoni, Fetti (Milan, 1990), nos. 28,
28a–e.
8. See, for instance, Thierry Beherman, Godfried Schalcken (Paris, 1988), no. 2 (Annunciation)and no. 35 (Latona), which are painted on panel and, in my opinion, must therefore dateearlier.
9. Peter Hecht, “Candlelight and Dirty Fingers, or Royal Virtue in Disguise: Some Thoughts on
Weyerman and Godfried Schalken,” Simiolus 11 (1980): 23–38; and Peter Hecht ed., De
Hollandse fijnschilders: van Gerard Dou tot Adriaen van der Werff (Exh. cat. Amsterdam,
Rijksmuseum) (Amsterdam, 1989), 182–216. Perhaps too much emphasis is placed here on
the figure’s resemblance to the artist. In Schalcken’s Virginity Threatened, which is certainly
not a self-portrait, a young man who closely resembles the figure in this portrait is chased bya matron who in turn closely resembles the old neighbor at the rear in our painting; Thierry
Beherman, Godfried Schalcken (Paris, 1988), no. 174; Peter Hecht, De Hollandse
fijnschilders: Van Gerard Dou tot Adriaen van der Werff (Exh. cat. Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum)(Maarssen and The Hague, 1989), no. 44.
10. It must be noted that Schalcken’s son-in-law, the architect Pieter Jacobsz Roman(1676–after 1733), was employed by the landgrave as intendant des bâtiments from 1721
until his death in 1733. Françoisia Schalcken (1690–after 1743), the only of the artist’s
children to live to adulthood, married Roman in The Hague in 1713. The couple would have
one child, a boy named Jacobus Godofridus (baptized in Rijswijk in 1717), who would notreach adulthood. On Roman, see Wouter Kuyper, “Dichtung und Wahrheit in tekeningen van
Adriaan Dortsman en Pieter Roman,” Bulletin KNOB 83 (1984): esp. 261 and 274.
11. On Wilhelm VIII as the founder of the painting collection in Kassel, see Everhard Korthals
Altes, De verovering van de internationale kunstmarkt door de zeventiende-eeuwse
schilderkunst: Enkele studies over de verspreiding van Hollandse schilderijen in de eerste
helft van de achttiende eeuw (Leiden, 2003), 185–205.
12. “Die Frau aus dem Evangelie, welche ihren Freunden den wieder gefundenen Grosschen
bey einem brennenden Lichte zeiget. NB Die Figuren auf diesem Stück sind des Malers
selbst und seiner Familie Portraits.” Simon Causid, Verzeichnis der Hochfürstlich-Hessischen
Gemälde-Sammlung in Cassel (Cassel, 1783), 206, no. 61; Thierry Beherman, Godfried
Schalcken (Paris, 1988), 209, no. 75.
13. “Schalken. Dieses Malers Frau in blauem Habit, einen Eisenkuchen in der Hand haltend.”
Simon Causid, Verzeichnis der Hochfürstlich-Hessischen Gemälde-Sammlung in Cassel(Cassel, 1783), 206, no. 61; Thierry Beherman, Godfried Schalcken (Paris, 1988), no. 145.
14. Oscar Eisenmann, Katalog der königlichen Gemälde-Galerie zu Cassel (Cassel, 1888),
XVIII–IX.
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15. Sale, Paris, Alphonse Giroux, expert’s appraisal by Charles Paillet, 24–26 November 1818,
lot 116, as: “Schalken (d’après). Jésus, voulant faire comprendre aux Pharisiens la joiequ’excitait dans le ciel la conversion d’un pêcheur, leur propose la parabole suivante: Unefemme qui avait dix drachmes, en ayant perdu une, alluma sa lampe, balaya sa maison et lachercha avec un grand soin jusqu’à ce qu’elle l’eût retrouvée, et l’ayant retrouveé, elle
appela ses amies et voisines, et leur dit; ‘réjouissez vous avec moi, parceque j’ai retrouveé
la drachme que j’avais perdue.’ Schalken a peint son portrait dans celui du jeune Israélite”(Schalcken [after]. Jesus, trying to make the Pharisees understand the joy that the conversion
of a sinner aroused in heaven, proposes the following parable: A woman who had ten
drachmas and, having lost one, lit her lamp, swept her house, and searched for it very
carefully until she found it, and, having found it, she called her friends and neighbors, andsaid to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found the drachma I had lost.” Schalcken has
painted his portrait in the [personage of the] young Israelite). Oil on panel, 15 x 17 pouces(approx. 40 x 46 cm). The other work is described in the sale of 6–7 December 1819
(expert’s appraisal by Henry), lot 27, as: “Schalken (d’après Godefroi) Hollandais. La
drachme perdue et retrouvée: parabole de Jésus-Christ. La femme qui a retrouvé sadrachme, tient d’une main la lampe qui lui a servi à la chercher, et de l’autre montre cettepièce à plusieurs personnes qui lui en témoignent leur satisfaction. Dans le coin du tableau, àgauche, est le portrait de Schalken. Il serait difficile de trouver une copie plus approchante deson original” (Schalcken [after Godefridus], Dutch. La drachma lost and found: a parable ofJesus Christ. The woman who found her drachma holds in one hand the lamp that helped herfind it, and with the other shows this piece to several persons who display their satisfaction. In
the corner of the picture, at the left, is a portrait of Schalcken. It would be difficult to find a
copy more similar to the original). Oil on panel, 15 x 18 pouces (approx. 40 x 48.5 cm). Oneof these copies is perhaps identical with the painting sold at Christie’s in London on 12
December 2003; lot 121, illustrated in the catalogue, oil on canvas laid down on panel, 38.4 x
48.2 cm, with a date of 1698, present location unknown. The work from the collection of Erick
W. Bergmann of Monroe, Michigan, which was sold as an original by Schalcken at ParkeBernet Galleries in New York on 24 February 1949 (lot 8, 38.1 x 45.7 cm, present location
unknown) was undoubtedly an old copy, although this can no longer be verified, because thework was not reproduced in the catalogue.
16. It is remarkable that the Leiden Collection boasts a copy after the principal female figure notin the original small format, but twice as large: oil on canvas, 78 x 58.4 cm. Since it camefrom a private collection in Paris, we may assume that this partial copy was also produced in
Paris in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. Another partial copy with some variation in
the same female figure is to be found in Thierry Beherman, Godfried Schalcken (Paris, 1988),
no. 313.
17. A copy on canvas (39 x 49 cm) was offered by Demade Enchères in Bernay on 26 June
2010, lot 41, as attributed to Michiel Versteegh (1756–1843). On 4 December 2011 in© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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Deauville, Artcurial offered a copy on canvas (40 x 50 cm, lot 6), again with an attribution to
the Dordrecht artist Michiel Versteegh, a follower of Schalcken.
18. RKD (Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie/Netherlands Institute for Art History)
Databases, Excerpts, HdG-fiche 1484959.

ProvenanceWilhelm VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (reg. 1751–60); by descent to his son Frederick II,
Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (reg. 1760–85); by descent to his son Wilhelm IX, Landgrave ofHesse-Kassel (reg. 1785–1803), Wilhelm I, Elector of Hesse, 1803–21; possibly seized byGeneral Lagrange in 1806.
(Sale, Alphonse Giroux, Paris, 1816, no. 357).
(Possibly, sale, Alphonse Giroux, Paris, 1819, no. 298).
Dr. Gerardus Munnicks van Cleeff, Utrecht (his sale, Hôtel Drouot, Paris, 4–5 April 1864, no.
85 [for 1,720 francs to Meffre]).
(Meffre sale, Hôtel Drouot, 1 May 1865, no. 58 [for 1,300 francs to Febvre]).
Marquise d’Aoust, by 1917 (her sale, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 5 June 1925, no. 83 [for1,050 francs, possibly to Heuvel]).
(Sale, Sotheby’s London, 4 July 2007, no. 35 [Johnny van Haeften, London, 2007]).
From whom acquired by the present owner in 2007.

Exhibition History
Valenciennes, Musée de Valenciennes, “Kunstwerke aus dem besetzen Nordfrankreich,”
1918, 70, no. 320, 153 [lent by the Marquise d’Aoust collection].
Cologne, Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, “Schalcken–Gemalte Verführung,” 25 September
2015–24 January 2016; Dordrecht, Dordrechts Museum, 21 February–26 June 2016, no. 59[lent by the present owner].
Beijing, National Museum of China, “Rembrandt and His Time: Masterpieces from The
Leiden Collection,” 17 June–3 September 2017 [lent by the present owner].
Shanghai, Long Museum, West Bund, “Rembrandt, Vermeer and Hals in the Dutch Golden
Age: Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection,” 23 September 2017–25 February 2018 [lentby the present owner].
© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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Moscow, The Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, “The Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer:
Masterpieces of The Leiden Collection,” 28 March 2018–22 July 2018 [lent by the present
owner].
St. Petersburg, The State Hermitage Museum, “The Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer:
Masterpieces of The Leiden Collection,” 5 September 2018–13 January 2019 [lent by thepresent owner].
Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi, “Rembrandt, Vermeer and the Dutch Golden Age.
Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection and the Musée du Louvre,” 14 February–18 May
2019 [lent by the present owner].

References
Haupt-Catalogus von Sr Hochfürstl: Durchlt. Herren Landgrafens Wilhelm zu eßen…Verfertiget
in Anno 1749. A. Nr. 1–869, Portraits 1–99, Manuscript Staatliche Museen Kassel, no. 153.
Causid, Simon. Verzeichnis der Hochfürstlich-Hessischen Gemälde-Sammlung in Cassel.
Kassel, 1783, 209, no. 75.
Inventarium der Gemäldegalerie zu Cassel mit Supplements I–V, 1816 ff. Nr. 1-2178.
Manuscript Staatliche Museum Kassel, no. 153.
Hofstede de Groot, Cornelis. A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch
Painters of the Seventeenth Century Based on the Work of John Smith. Edited and translatedby Edward G. Hawke. 8 vols. London, 1907–28, 5:320, no. 30 (possibly equivalent with nos.
30a, 257). Originally published as Beschreibendes und kritisches Verzeichnis der Werke derhervorragendsten höllandischen Maler des XVII. Jahrhunderts. 10 vols. Esslingen and Paris,
1907–28.
Gronau, Georg.“Der Verluste der Casseler Galerie in der Ziet der französischen Okkupation
1806–1813.” Internationale Monatschrift für Wissenschaft 11 (1917): 1207.
Thieme, Ulrich, and Felix Becker, eds. Allgemeines Lexikon der bildenden Künstler von derAntike bis zur Gegenwart. 37 vols. Leipzig, 1935–50, 29:570.
Pigler, Andor. Barokthemen: Eine Auswahl von Verzeichnissen zur Ikonographie des 17. und
18. Jahrhunderts. 3 vols. Budapest, 1956, 1:366.
Herzog, Erich. Die Gemäldegalerie der Staatlichen Kunstsammlungen Kassel. Kassel, 1969,54, no. 23.
Beherman, Thierry. Godfried Schalcken. Paris, 1988, 89–90, no. 9.
Jansen, Guido M.C. “Das Gleichnis von der verlorenen Münze, 1680–85.” In Schalcken –Gemalte Verführung. Edited by Anja K. Sevcik, 242–45, no. 59. Exh. cat. Cologne, WallrafRichartz-Museum; Dordrecht, Dordrechts Museum. Stuttgart, 2015.
© 2020 The Leiden Collection

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Schavemaker, Eddy. “What Hair Can Reveal: Schalcken’s Chronology and Hairstyles as a
Dating Aid.” Wallraf-Richartz-Jarbuch 77 (2016): 49, no. 6.
Yeager-Crasselt, Lara. “Rembrandt and His Time: China and the Dutch Republic in theGolden Age.” In Rembrandt and His Time: Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection. Editedby Lara Yeager-Crasselt, 10; 15, no. 44. Translated by Li Ying. Exh. cat. Beijing, National
Museum of China. Beijing, 2017
Yeager-Crasselt, Lara. “Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver.” In Rembrandt and His Time:
Masterpieces of The Leiden Collection. Edited by Lara Yeager-Crasselt, 108–9; 182, no. 44.
Translated by Li Ying. Exh. cat. Beijing, National Museum of China. Beijing, 2017.
Long Museum, West Bund. Rembrandt, Vermeer and Hals in the Dutch Golden Age:
Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection. Exh. cat. Shanghai, Long Museum, West Bund.
Shanghai, 2017, 118–19.
Yeager-Crasselt, Lara. “Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver.” In The Age of Rembrandt andVermeer: Masterpieces of The Leiden Collection. Edited by Polina Lyubimova, 200–1; 246,
no. 67. Translated by Daria Babich and Daria Kuzina. Exh. cat. Moscow, The Pushkin State
Museum of Fine Arts; St. Petersburg, The State Hermitage Museum. Moscow, 2018.
Ducos, Blaise, and Lara Yeager-Crasselt, eds. Rembrandt, Vermeer and the Dutch Golden
Age. Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection and the Musée du Louvre. Exh. cat. Abu
Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi. London, 2019, 150–1, no. 72. [Exhibition catalogue also publishedin French and Arabic.]

Versions
Versions and Copies

1. Godefridus Schalcken, Parable, 38.1 x 45.7 cm, present location unknown (Erick W.
Bergmann, his sale, Parke-Bernet Gallery, New York, 24 February 1949, no. 8).

2. After Godefridus Schalcken, Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver, 1698, oil on canvas laid downon panel, 38.4 x 48.2 cm, present location unknown (sale Christie’s, London, 12 December
2003, no. 121).

Technical Summary
The support, a single piece of fine, plain-weave fabric, has been lined. All four tacking margins
have been removed and paper tape extends into the face of the painting along all foursides. Cusping and outer stretcher-bar creases along the upper, left, and right edges suggest the© 2020 The Leiden CollectionPowered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

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original dimensions have not been significantly altered in these three directions. There is one red
wax seal but no canvas stamps, inscriptions or labels along the lining or stretcher.
A light-colored ground has been thinly and evenly applied. The paint has been applied wet-intowet through the flesh tones, and with loose fluid brushstrokes in thin, smooth glazes with no use
of impasto through the drapery. Small strokes of slightly raised paint are used to create thehighlights of the gold sash and the brocade along the bodices worn by the two female figures
along the right.
There are no obvious pentimenti, and no underdrawing or compositional changes are readily
apparent in infrared images captured at 780–1000 nanometers or in the X-radiograph.
The painting has been inscribed in red paint in the center of the lower foreground, to the right ofthe dog. The inscription continues across the fine network of craquelure that has formed throughthe brown paint in the foreground, which suggests it is a later inscription rather than a signature.
The painting was cleaned and restored in 2007 and remains in a good state of preservation.

© 2020 The Leiden Collection