Jacob's Ladder

Rembrandt · 1655
National Gallery of Art, Washington

This plate is one of four tiny plates Rembrandt etched for “Piedra gloriosa” (1655), a Spanish book about the statue of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream by his Amsterdam neighbour, the rabbi and printer Menasseh ben Israel. It is barely 11 cm high.

Jacob sleeps on the steps of a great stair that rises into light. Angels in long robes crowd around him, some looking down at the sleeper, one climbing away to the top. Dense, dark hatching fills the night around them.

From the text

Jacob asleep on the ground, a stone for a pillow (Genesis 28:11)

A ladder reaching to heaven, “God’s angels … going up and down” (Genesis 28:12)

The artist’s own

A broad stair instead of a ladder, as some painters of the time drew it

The angels as winged people in long robes, close to Jacob

Details

Jacob asleep

He lies across the lower steps, head on his arm.

Going up

A winged figure climbs towards the light at the top.

Coming down

Angels lean down from above to look at the sleeper.

Signature

Below the picture: “Rembrandt f 1655”.

Rembrandt van Rijn, Dutch, 1606–1669. National Gallery of Art, Washington (Gift of Jacob Kainen, 2002.98.55) · Etching and drypoint · NGA Open Access: "Images of these works are available free of charge for any use, commercial or non-commercial, under Creative Commons Zero (CC0)." (NGA open data: published_images.csv openaccess = 1)

The verses

Gen 28:11–13On reaching a certain place, he spent the night there because the sun had set. And taking one of the stones from that place, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. And Jacob had a dream about a ladder that rested on the earth with its top reaching up to heaven, and God’s angels were going up and down the ladder. And there at the top the LORD was standing and saying, “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you now lie.