A few centimeters from Rembrandt’s painting The Mennonite Preacher Anslo and His Wife (1641), it dripped through the ceiling Photo: David Grubbs
By Michael Zollner
There was water ingress in the picture gallery. On Friday it was dripping through the ceiling due to the heavy rain. The supervisors reacted quickly.
The Rembrandt Hall is one of the highlights of the Berlin Picture Gallery. However, around 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon, water leaked into the hall with the outstanding works of the Dutch master.
A few centimeters from Rembrandt’s painting The Mennonite Preacher Anslo and His Wife (1641), it dripped through the ceiling. The supervisors noticed the incident, and the restorers on site immediately provided “first aid”, according to a spokesman for the museums.
They secured the relevant areas in the hall over a large area with special absorbent mats and a bucket. The painting was first protected with foil before the large-format picture was taken down using a lifting platform.
“No damage was done to the painting itself,” according to the museums. “Thanks to the quick response, no water reached the plant.”
It is currently kept in the depot. The site of the water inrush was inspected and secured. The affected hall and the entire picture gallery are still open as usual.