Public domain
The flute player
From the collection of Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This print was formerly called ‘het Uylenspiegeltje’ (the scoundrel), and not without reason. Rembrandt concealed all kinds of erotic double entendres in this scene of a shepherd couple beside the water. The man furtively peeks under the woman’s skirt and happens to point with his flute – a phallic symbol – in the same direction. The woman is weaving a wreath of flowers, an allusion to female genitalia.
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam’s own descriptionSubjects
Credit lineDe fluitspeler. 1642. Rembrandt van Rijn. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Public domain.
