Few biblical figures have inspired such enduring fascination across cultures as Esther. The Jewish Museum’s new exhibit, “The Book of Esther in the Age of Rembrandt,” transcends a mere retelling of the Purim narrative. Instead, it positions Esther as a cultural touchstone for 17th-century Dutch society, appearing variously as a model of political cunning, feminine virtue, and national allegory.
Through ceremonial artifacts, richly illustrated Megillot, Protestant court portraits and scenic oil paintings, the exhibit traces how Sephardic Jewish émigrés and Christian Dutch artists alike found relevance in her story. Organized into three galleries, the exhibit follows the arc of Jewish migration and flourishing in the Netherlands while exploring how Esther’s image was reshaped to reflect the aspirations, aesthetics and anxieties of the early modern period.
The opening gallery situates the viewer in the vibrant world of 17th-century Amsterdam, a city that became a refuge for Jews fleeing persecution in the Iberian Peninsula. Following the 1492 Alhambra Decree in Spain and the 1496 expulsion from Portugal, many Sephardic Jews—some of them Conversos returning to open Jewish practice—settled in the more-tolerant Dutch Republic. Amsterdam, in particular, emerged as a center of Jewish life, where religious freedom was permitted even as political integration remained limited.
The room features an etching by Frederik De Wit commemorating the 1675 dedication of the Portuguese Synagogue—an architectural declaration of Jewish permanence in the urban landscape. This motif of visibility continues through a series of ornate Esther scrolls, one inscribed in Spanish, a reminder that even in exile, Iberian Jews preserved their linguistic and cultural heritage. These Megillot, embellished thanks to innovations in Dutch printmaking, blended local aesthetics with ritual use. Their intricately detailed borders, luxurious materials and portability—used both at home and during Megillah reading services—signal the dual identity of Jewish ceremonial art: sacred and worldly, personal and communal.
In the context of newly gained religious autonomy, Esther became a figure not only of salvation but of spiritual reclamation. Strikingly, this period also saw Protestant queens and noblewomen portrayed in the guise of Esther, borrowing her iconography as a symbol of courage, divine favor and moral authority.
The second exhibit plunges into a more intimate engagement with Esther’s narrative as it was reimagined on Dutch canvases. She appears in a range of dramatic portrayals—timid before Achashverosh, seated in loving partnership, or interceding on behalf of her people at grave personal risk. Esther is frequently depicted as a fair-haired, round-faced woman, conforming to the prevailing Dutch beauty ideal rather than her probable Persian appearance. This visual Europeanization of Esther underscores how deeply the Dutch painters internalized her as their own cultural archetype, a virtuous woman negotiating the corridors of power.
The paintings alternate between grandeur and subtlety. One canvas, by Frans Francken the Younger, shows Esther in luminous, billowing textiles as she knelt before the king’s throne, a scene rendered with operatic tension and emotional precision. Another sketch, by Rembrandt van Rijn, shows Mordechai’s public exaltation, a parable of Jewish vindication. These images are not mere illustrations; they are reinterpretations of biblical drama through the lens of Dutch theatricality and moralism. Supplementing these works are even more refined Megillot, illuminated scrolls now elevated to the status of collectible art. Their increased production and sophistication point to a growing class of affluent Jewish patrons, eager to blend ritual fidelity with artistic excellence.
The final room shifts from visual to performance art. Here, Esther’s journey is traced into the performative sphere, beginning with Spanish comedias—dramas that blended the tragic and the comedic—adapted by Dutch playwrights for an increasingly cosmopolitan audience. The Schouwburg, Amsterdam’s first public theater (est. 1638), became a hub for such productions. Early Esther plays staged there invoked both biblical and political resonance, often drawing implicit parallels between the Dutch Republic and ancient Israel. Rembrandt and his contemporaries were keen observers of this theatrical culture, incorporating set designs and dramatic poses from the stage into their paintings.
In Vlooienburg, the epicenter of Jewish life, Sephardic Jews staged plays in private homes and converted warehouses. These Purim performances, though rooted in religious celebration, engaged with high artistic standards and spoke to the community’s self-assured cultural fluency. Among Ashkenazi Jews, the tradition of Purim spiels, informal, carnivalesque parodies, endured alongside. The juxtaposition reveals two coexisting aesthetics: one refined and intellectual, the other subversive and folkloric, both grounded in Esther’s narrative of reversal and reinvention.
“The Book of Esther in the Age of Rembrandt” is a model of curatorial clarity and accessibility. Thoughtfully organized across three distinct galleries, the exhibit invites viewers of all ages into a story that unfolds with both narrative momentum and visual richness. It guides visitors through a series of vivid, thematically connected spaces, each offering fresh insight into Esther’s legacy in early modern Dutch culture. At its core is a meticulously assembled collection of Esther scrolls, displayed alongside masterful paintings and prints from the Dutch Golden Age, all of which reflect the era’s deep engagement with biblical narrative and visual storytelling. It only takes 20 minutes to see the full exhibit, and admission for kids under 18 is free.
These artifacts are not merely illustrative; they form a dialogue across religious traditions and artistic media, illuminating how one biblical figure came to embody the cultural hybridity, resilience and expressive power of 17th-century Amsterdam.
Visit this polyphonic exhibition at the Jewish Museum, 1109 Fifth Avenue (92nd and 5th), until August 10.
Caroline Altschul is a senior at SAR High School.
