# The mystery of the Japanese bacteria living on Rembrandt’s ‘The Night Watch’

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/the-mystery-of-the-japanese-bacteria-living-on-rembrandts-the-night-watch/
- Published: 2026-11-12T16:33:08+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-12T18:55:19+00:00
- Original publisher: El País (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2026-11-12/the-mystery-of-the-japanese-bacteria-living-on-rembrandts-the-night-watch.html
- Topics: Asia, Paranormal, Research, Science, Weird & Viral, World

## Key points

- Researchers found several kinds of bacteria on The Night Watch.
- One species was first identified at a Japanese sugar refinery.
- Scientists cannot determine when it reached the painting.

## Summary

Researchers studying microbes on Rembrandt’s The Night Watch have found bacteria associated with human skin and soil, alongside an unexpected species first identified at a sugar refinery in Japan. The discovery is part of a wider effort to understand the painting’s surface and could help inform its ongoing conservation.

The Rijksmuseum and Artis-Micropia collected 60 samples from 10 areas, using sterile discs and laboratory cultures; sampling will continue for six months across varnished and unvarnished sections. The Japanese species, Microbacterium saccharophilum, was reported in 2013, and researchers cannot tell when it arrived on the painting. The findings will be shared with the Rijksmuseum as conservators continue removing varnish in the Gallery of Honour.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.