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The press release issued by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on 27 August 2026.

The government has temporarily banned a Rembrandt painting worth £71 million from being taken out of the UK permanently.

• A UK gallery or institution has been granted the opportunity to save this masterpiece for the nation 

The UK government has blocked a painting by Rembrandt, one of the most famous artists of all time, from being taken out of the country permanently in the hope that a UK gallery or institution can save it for the nation.  

Rembrandt’s Portrait of Catrina Hooghsaet, painted in 1657, is one of the artist’s most exceptional later works, and has been displayed in the UK since the mid eighteenth century. It is valued at £71 million, the most expensive object ever to be given national treasure status.  

The decision to place a temporary export ban on the portrait gives museums and galleries time to raise the funds needed to acquire it, with the aim of keeping an important work in the UK and on public display.  

The portrait is of exceptional importance to our shared history and national life; it adds value to our understanding of Rembrandt and his works, social relations, gender, religion and identity in the Dutch Republic, Rembrandt’s place in British collections, and the wider history of the art of portrait painting. 

The portrait depicts Catrina Hooghsaet, an affluent member of Amsterdam’s Mennonite community whose unconventional domestic life saw her live separately from her husband. Rembrandt’s thoughtful depiction captures both her character and individuality, demonstrating his celebrated ability to convey the inner life of his sitters. 

Arts Minister, Ruth Mackenzie said: 

The Portrait of Catrina Hooghsaet has been part of the UK’s cultural life for centuries. The scale, beauty and history of this masterpiece make it a priority for cultural partners, funders, philanthropists, and lovers of Rembrandt to help this masterpiece keep its historical place in the UK.

Andrew Hochhauser KC, Committee Chairman said:  

Painted in the final phase of his career, Rembrandt’s portrait of Catrina Hooghsaet ranks amongst his finest achievements. It belongs to a rare group of large-scale three-quarter-length portraits and stands out for its delicacy, refinement, and exceptional finish. 

Rembrandt transforms her relatively ordinary features into a striking image of beauty through his sensitivity, honesty and profound psychological insight. 

Catrina Hooghsaet’s unusually well-documented life allows the portrait to be studied alongside rich historical evidence, providing rare insights into social relations, gender, religion, and identity in the Dutch Republic.  

This is a painting of outstanding aesthetic importance, of outstanding significance to our cultural history. It is also of outstanding significance to the study of the history of portraiture, the oeuvre of Rembrandt and the history of collecting his work in Britain. This enormously important painting should be saved for the nation and kept on public display in this country.

The Committee recommended that the painting should be subject to an export bar because it met all three Waverley criteria. These criteria are used to assess whether an object is of national importance and its departure from the UK would be a misfortune. In this case, the painting was recognised for its strong connection with our history and national life, its exceptional aesthetic quality, and its importance to the study of Rembrandt and his work.  

The decision on the export licence application for the painting will be deferred for an initial period ending on 26 December 2026 inclusive in which we welcome expressions of interest from an appropriate purchaser to try and acquire the object. At the end of the first deferral period owners will have a consideration period of 15 Business Days to consider any offer(s) to purchase the painting at the recommended price of £71,696,324.90 (plus VAT of £754,698.15). The second deferral period will commence following the signing of an Option Agreement and will last for nine months.  

When someone applies to permanently export a important cultural object from the UK, the Government can pause the export if the object is considered a national treasure. This gives a UK museum or appropriate purchaser time to raise the money to keep it in the country.   

Notes to editors 

Organisations or individuals interested in purchasing the painting should contact the RCEWA on 02072680534 or rcewa@artscouncil.org.uk. 

Details of the item are as follows: Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn (1606–1669); Portrait of Catrina Hooghsaet (1607–1685); Oil on canvas, 126 x 98.5 cm; Inscribed and signed on the shield upper left: ‘CATRINA HOOGH / SÆT. / OVT. 50. / Jaer’ and ‘Rembrandt. f. / 1657.’ 

Provenance:  

• Catrina Hooghsaet (1607–1685), Amsterdam 
• Her third husband, Jan Schildt (died 1686), Amsterdam 
• Probably John Fane, Lord Le Despencer, 7th Earl of Westmorland (1685–1762), Mereworth House, Kent, by 1752 
• Sir Francis Dashwood, 2nd Bt, Lord Le Despencer (1708–1781), of West Wycombe, and Mereworth House, Kent, by 1780 
• By descent to his sister, Rachel Dashwood (c.1706–1788), wife of Sir Robert Austen, 4th Bt 
• By descent to her cousin, Sir Thomas Stapleton, 6th Bt, Lord Le Despencer (1766–1831), of Rotherfield Greys, and Mereworth Castle, Kent 
• His posthumous sale, 1831 
• Bought after this sale by Peacock [probably the London dealer Michael Peacock (c.1785–1843)], for £178 10s.  *Collection Edmund Higginson (né Barneby) (1802–1871), Saltmarshe Castle, Herefordshire, by 1836 
• His sale, London (Christie’s), 4–6 June 1846, lot 221 (£798, bought in) 
• His sale, London (Christie’s), 4–6 June 1860, lot 43 (740 gns., to Farrer [the London 
• dealer Henry Farrer, 1798–1866]) 
• Collection Colonel the Hon. Edward Douglas-Pennant, 1st Baron Penrhyn of Llandegai (1800–1886), and by descent 
• Private sale, 2015, when acquired by a private collector, 
• Private sale, (Christie’s) 2025, when acquired. 

The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest is an independent body, serviced by Arts Council England (ACE), which advises the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on whether a cultural object, intended for export, is of national importance under specified criteria.