Head of a Rat Catcher

Description

Head of a Rat Catcher is a seventeenth-century etching after Rembrandt. Its compact subject directs attention toward the head of a figure identified by an everyday occupation rather than a distinguished social position. The focus on a working person gives the study a direct, human interest and connects it to the observation of ordinary life.

The small format makes the head itself the center of attention. Etched line can establish the contours of a face and suggest character with a limited vocabulary of marks, without requiring an elaborate setting. The title also asks the viewer to consider the person behind an occupation that might otherwise pass unnoticed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s attribution to an unnamed maker after Rembrandt is retained, acknowledging the composition’s relationship to his work.