Portrait of a Man in a Red Beret

In 1968 the painting was exhibited in the Tesori nascosti della Galleria di Parma exhibition, for which it was detached from its canvas mount, revealing a studies for a Saint Catherine and a Madonna and Child on the reverse.

The art historian Ghidiglia Quintavalle theorised that the work was a late Parmigianino self-portrait, identifying it with "a coloured painting finished di lapis showing a self-portrait of the Parmesanino, 0.5 high by 4 tall", a work mentioned in a posthumous inventory of his studio.

[1] However, this identification remains in doubt, since the Parma work does not have Parmigianino's usual lead graphite "di lapis" finish.

Its attribution to Parmigianino is almost unanimous among art historians and is upheld by Fagiolo dell'Arco (1970), Rossi (1980), Freedberg (1987), Di Giampaolo (1991), Gould (1994), Coliva (1998) and Chiusa (2001).

Although it has been exhibited as Self-Portrait of Parmiganino, the attribution to Anselmi has recently been re-advanced due to stylistic details such as the ruffled hair, the soft serpentine beard and the study of the saint on the reverse, which may correspond with Anselmi's Saint Jerome and Saint Catherine (Pinacoteca di Brera).