The Virgin and Child with the Cat and Snake

Rembrandt van Rijn

National Gallery of Art

This print shows a seated woman holding a small child in her arms. She is leaning slightly forward, the child's face pressed to her face. The woman's facial features are hard to identify against the crosshatching gray lines on her skin, but it seems as if her eyes are closed, and her hair is covered with a cloth or headscarf. She wears a long, simple dress with sleeves. The child's body is mostly obscured by the woman's arms, but its face is turned towards us, and it appears to be smiling slightly. On the left, a cat or similar animal is seated on a cushion or ledge. Behind the woman is a window, and the room is cluttered with other furniture including a chair, an open chest, and what may be a fireplace in the bottom right corner. Outside the window, a man is visible, with short hair and a beard. He appears to be looking into the room. Curtains hang down on the walls, and stairs lead downward in the bottom left corner. A halo-like circle seems to surround the head of the woman, and rays of light radiate from her. Upon closer inspection, a snake is visible emerging from the skirts of the woman, its tongue outstretched.