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Portrait of an Old Man

ca. 1595–1600
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 619
With its intimate scale, direct address and similarity to images that represent El Greco, this painting has often been identified as a self-portrait—a strong possibility, but impossible to confirm. El Greco’s portraiture is exceptional for its time because of its penetrating naturalism and psychological insight, often conveyed through the weary features such as these that have been so lightly brushed that the dark grey ground layer shows through.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Portrait of an Old Man
  • Artist: El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) (Greek, Iráklion (Candia) 1541–1614 Toledo)
  • Date: ca. 1595–1600
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 20 3/4 x 18 3/8 in. (52.7 x 46.7 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1924
  • Object Number: 24.197.1
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

More Artwork

More Artwork
Saint Jerome as Scholar, El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) Greek, Oil on canvas
Saint Jerome as Scholar
El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos)
ca. 1610
Embroidered Medallion, Silk and metal thread embroidery on a foundation of linen plain weave, Byzantine
Embroidered Medallion
Byzantine
15th–16th century
Self-Portrait with Two Pupils, Marie Gabrielle Capet (1761–1818) and Marie Marguerite Carraux de Rosemond (1765–1788), Adélaïde Labille-Guiard French, Oil on canvas
Self-Portrait with Two Pupils, Marie Gabrielle Capet (1761–1818) and Marie Marguerite Carraux de Rosemond (1765–1788)
Adélaïde Labille-Guiard
1785
Cardinal Fernando Niño de Guevara (1541–1609), El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) Greek, Oil on canvas
Cardinal Fernando Niño de Guevara (1541–1609)
El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos)
ca. 1600
Christ Carrying the Cross, El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) Greek, Oil on canvas
Christ Carrying the Cross
El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos)
ca. 1577–87

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