The man’s attire suggests that he could be Spanish. In the mid 16th century, Spanish fashions predominated, and men belonging to the elite wore black, narrowly cut costumes. In both dress and portraiture, stern distance was combined with costly elegance. It takes great skill both to make and to depict black cloth. It is not known who painted this work, but it recalls the style of Anthonis Mor, a Netherlandish portraitist active internationally, including in Spain and England.