Not currently on view
In the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland · as of August 2026
FROM THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART’S CATALOG
Although 17th-century Holland produced neither noteworthy composers nor renowned performers, rarely has another culture produced so many visual images of music as the Dutch. In this depiction of a pair of itinerant musicians wearily shuffling from door to door, Rembrandt reveals his compassionate understanding of human frailties. The hurdy-gurdy and bagpipes, as depicted here, were frequently associated with itinerant beggars and blind street singers in paintings and prints of the period.
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Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) — The Strolling Musicians
Adriaen van Ostade (Dutch, 1610–1684) — The Spectacle Seller
Adriaen van Ostade — The Spectacle Seller
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) — The Adoration of the Shephe
Francisco Lameyer y Berenguer — Plate 12: a group of people
Francisco Lameyer y Berenguer — Plate 18: street musicians a
Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich (German, 1712–1774) — The P
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) — The Adoration of the Shephe
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (Italian, 1696–1770) — Scherzi di
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) — Christ Seated Disputing wit
Francisco de Goya (Spanish, 1746–1828) — The Proverbs: Carn
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn) — Beggars Receiving Alms at t