Rembrandt Copied Van de Venne's 1619 Dog, Scans Show

Rijksmuseum curator Anne Lenders accidentally discovered that the barking dog in Rembrandt’s 1642 Night Watch closely copies a 1619 pen-and-ink drawing by Adriaen van de Venne that appeared in a Jacob Cats book. Detailed comparison of pose, collar and head angle, supported by macro X‑ray fluorescence scans of a chalk underdrawing, shows Rembrandt adapted the motif—placing the dog on all fours and adding a tongue to make it appear to bark at a drummer. The finding emerged as part of Operation Night Watch, the Rijksmuseum’s high‑tech restoration and study project of the canvas begun in 2019. Curators and scholars say such borrowing was common in the Dutch Golden Age and considered emulation rather than plagiarism, noting Rembrandt owned Van de Venne prints and used earlier sources in other works. The Van de Venne drawing has been in the Rijksmuseum collection since 1919.