Painted when the artist was fifty-four, it has been noted as a work in which may be seen "the wrinkled brow and the worried expression the troubled condition of his mind".

The mouth is drawn and the mark of undeserved neglect is evident in the premature wrinkles, but a certain merry pride lurks in the tilted cap and raised head.

Yet he never lost his courage, and as we see him in this portrait he carries his head bravely and wears his hat jauntily, as if in defiance of the evils that engulfed him.

The shadows in the face are thin, warm, and transparent, while the lighter parts, as on the cheek, are laid on with a well-loaded brush, suggesting the texture of the flesh and made to glow with color.

[1] In 1914 a Metropolitan Museum guide said: "Those who happen to be familiar with the self-portrait of a year or so earlier, belonging to Henry C. Frick, will find a comparison of the moods of that picture and our work an interesting one.