It is seen as one of a number of Vermeer's tronies – depictions of models fancifully dressed that were not (as far as is known) intended to be portraits of specific, identifiable subjects.

[1] Its attribution to Vermeer – as it is on a (recycled) wood panel and not on canvas – has been a matter of controversy with scholars on both sides of the argument.

[2] However, in recent study carried out by the curators of National Gallery of Art certainty has been established on the authorship of the painting by Vermeer, a conclusion also supported by Dutch experts.

[3][4] The portrait depicts a very young woman dressed in blue, wearing a collar that appears to be lace and a red hat.

Her mouth is ajar and her face, slightly pink, receives light from the right, which is unusual in the works of Johannes Vermeer.