About this artwork
In this cozy scene, two humble street performers serenade a peasant family with a hurdy-gurdy and bagpipes, instruments long associated with folk music and itinerant musicians. The older man cranks the wheel of the hurdy-gurdy, which functions like a mechanized fiddle, while playing the instrument’s keyboard. The younger man produces a melody by fingering the holes on the bagpipe’s lower pipe while the two upper pipes play single continuous bass notes. Their tune has elicited a mixed response: the small child smiles gleefully, while the little terrier huddles in fear.
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Prints and Drawings
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Artist
- Rembrandt van Rijn
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Title
- The Strolling Musicians
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Origin
- Holland
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Date
- 1630–1640
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Medium
- Etching in black on tan laid paper
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Dimensions
- 139 × 116 mm (plate/image); 141 × 171 mm (sheet)
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Credit Line
- Clarence Buckingham Collection
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Reference Number
- 1938.1785
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/29204/manifest.json
Extended information about this artwork
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