Self Portrait Leaning on a Stone Sill

In his most confident self-portrait etching, Rembrandt portrayed himself in the manner of a Renaissance courtier. With a tilted beret and fanciful costume, he modeled his pose from an Italian Renaissance portrait by Titian (1485–1576) and Raphael (1483–1520), symbolically identifying himself as part of a great artistic tradition. At this time, he had successfully sold several paintings to the stadholder—a provincial governor—and moved into a house large enough to accommodate his family, workshop, students, and collections.

Rembrandt’s expertise with the etching needle is clear in this illusionistic composition. The artist convincingly described spatial depth with an arm that realistically juts over a ledge. The skillful handling of textures, most admirable in the wispy hair, underscores Rembrandt’s command of the etching technique. For dramatic effect, Rembrandt silhouetted his likeness against a stark background, with no details except for a cluster of strokes in the lower right to suggest depth.