This moving etching by Rembrandt, Agony in the Garden, is from the Thrivent Collection of Religious Art.
Made around 1657, artist Rembrandt van Rijn imagines a poignant moment in the Passion story: Christ’s Agony in the Garden. Surrounded by the darkness of night, Jesus is utterly alone praying in the Garden of Gethsemane until an angel swoops down and offers emotional, and even physical, support. True to the biblical text, disciples slumber in the lower left.
Rembrandt’s remarkable gift for conveying realistic human emotion is clear—the angel’s outstretched arms and gently tilted head infuse reassurance and support into this expression of Christ’s exhausted, faith-filled acceptance of God’s will.
Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, 1606-1669)
Agony in the Garden, c. 1657
Etching and drypoint
Thrivent Art Collection