Sarah Waiting for Tobias by Dutch master Rembrandt contains beautifully subtle effects of shading on the skin of the woman peering out from the bed.
The 1643 painting also has different textures, from the gold of her tiara to the rich fabric that Sarah lifts with her left hand – expertly painted, emphasizing the illusion of depth and of realism. Sarah’s anxious expression as she looks out tells of the story from the biblical Apocrypha of Tobias defeating the demon that killed her previous seven husbands.
Rembrandt’s Sarah Waiting for Tobias is in the National Gallery of Scotland.