This portrait of an unidentified young man shows Moroni at the height of his powers. The direct manner and the sitter’s forthright gaze are hallmarks of the artist’s approach. The great historian Roberto Longhi wrote that the depiction is "so real, simple, documentary that it actually communicates a sense of certainty of having known the model." The painting is one of a small group in which the sitter is shown bust length behind a parapet bearing an inscription as if carved in elegant letters, sometimes giving the sitter’s age and the date.
