In the Netherlands, the way is clear for the purchase of a €175 million self-portrait by Rembrandt van Rijn.

After the Chamber of Deputies, the Senate this week also approved the acquisition of the oil painting from 1636, in which the artist presents himself as a standard-bearer in the Dutch War of Independence.

Approval was necessary because the budget of the Ministry of Culture and Science had to be increased for the spectacular purchase from the private property of the Rothschild banking family.

Thomas Gutschker

Political correspondent for the European Union, NATO and the Benelux countries based in Brussels.

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The Dutch state is paying 150 million euros, the rest of the money will be borne by the private Rembrandt Society and a donor fund.

The painting "The Standard Bearer" will first go on a tour of several Dutch museums before being given a place in the gallery of honor at Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum - in the same room as the famous "Night Watch", to which it is repeatedly referred to.

Trust in the Cook Islands

The purchase was approved, although it had recently become known that it would be handled through two tax havens. Independent Senator Henk Otten disclosed this after viewing the preliminary purchase agreement. Accordingly, the sum must be transferred to a trust in the Cook Islands in the Pacific belonging to a holding company registered in Saint Vincent in the Caribbean. Apparently this construction was chosen to save taxes. Otten questioned how such a transaction would relate to the government's anti-tax avoidance policy. The State Secretary responsible, Gunay Uslu, defended the purchase, arguing that the trust had no tax connection with the Netherlands, so the state would not be disadvantaged.

The Dutch government had arranged the acquisition in the utmost secrecy after the French state waived its right of first refusal because of the record price. Only the group leaders were confidentially informed, with the exception of one: Thierry Baudet from the right-wing populist Forum for Democracy. The culture minister at the time feared that Baudet would break confidentiality and stir up sentiment against the purchase. The party now voted against it in both chambers of parliament. Otten is one of its co-founders but was expelled in 2019 after internal conflicts.

Criticism of the high purchase price was also expressed by other factions. They pointed to the ailing cultural sector, which has been in lockdown for a month due to the pandemic. All museums and theaters have been closed since then, while shops have been allowed to reopen since mid-January with conditions. Ultimately, however, the assessment prevailed that this was a unique opportunity that should not be missed. The painting has been in the possession of private collectors for centuries, including the British royal family. It was "a dream for generations to bring the flag bearer back to our country," said Taco Dibbits, director of the Rijksmuseum, when the acquisition was announced in early December. The work marks the painter's artistic breakthrough: "This is where Rembrandt became Rembrandt!"