The following description has been prepared entirely by the current owner, Roberts S. Fastov, Esq., and, at the collector’s request, has not been edited by Sloans & Kenyon

Note 1) Per people.usd.edu on the internet:

“Christ Rejected is a painting of Christ being rejected by the High Priest. While West was President of the Royal Academy he was sort of in the same predicament. The king did not want to reelect him because of his poor work. This made him feel terrible and he was not painting very well because of it. Possibly this rejection by the king was the same thing that he believed Christ endured and wanted to display that through this painting. Artists create compositions based on their own personal experiences and this was a major life experience for him. He was just trying to convey his message to all of his followers as was Christ. Christ Rejected, one of West's last paintings was also one of his most famous. Perhaps his life experiences, although very depressing, allowed him to create such a meaningful and moving piece of art that many people could relate to.

Even though Christ is not actually at the center of the painting, he is obviously the center of attention in Christ Rejected. Christ has a white glow around his entire self and also a shimmering halo surrounding his head. It is questionable as to why the glow and halo are there considering he was wanted dead by almost all the people surrounding him in the painting. The answer perhaps is because Benjamin West was a religious man, having studied only the bible until age 12, and Christ was his savior. This painting reflects West's views concerning Christ and not the people involved in the painting. The white glow gives the impression of Christ's godliness, peace, and goodness. The halo is a universal sign and is understood by all to mean perfection. Another thing that makes Christ stand out is that he is the only one standing on the third tier. This makes him almost tower over everyone else in the painting. Not only is he spiritually above everyone but also physically. Christ's facial expressions are probably the most easily interpreted. He is in a peaceful calm state although he knows that death awaits him. He shows no signs of struggle or fear knowing that he is taking his life for the good of man. There is however a certain look of pity but not pity for himself but for the people who are about to crucify him. The man standing behind Christ is covering his shoulders with a black cloak. With the black cloak comes the imminence of Christ's death. Death is upon him just as the cloak rests upon his shoulders. It is a sense of knowing that he is going to die and that black cloak symbolizes death as it engulfs him.”

Note 2) See Note 2) of Lot 1083, the other Sartain print, which warrants the conclusion that the presale estimate of $200-$600 is reasonable and justifiable.