No artist has made as many self-portraits as Rembrandt. From the start of his career until his last year of life, he recorded his own facial features in etchings, drawings and paintings. The earliest self-portraits are mainly studies in expression, in later years they emphasize the self-confident attitude of the successful artist, while the latest self-portraits are psychologically charged portraits. The early self-portraits, especially the etchings, focus on the face, leaving out attributes or costumes, which became more prominent later on. With the exception of the hat. Rembrandt depicted himself wearing a variety of headgear.
The fur hat that can be seen in this self-portrait from 1631, is a later addition. It is clearly visible that Rembrandt had initially depicted himself bareheaded, with free play for the characteristic curls. In the second instance he must have thought that a cap was a suitable attribute and he drew it over the hair with his etching needle, without covering it completely. The somewhat gruff look and the light falling on the face and neck were the main objective. Where previous self-portraits still show a youthful, overconfident daredevil, here we see Rembrandt for the first time as a somewhat serious, grown man.
The etching is signed with Rembrandt's monogram ‘RHL’, as was customary when he lived in Leiden. The monogram stands for ‘Rembrandt Harmensz. Leydensis’. After moving to Amsterdam, Rembrandt switched to signing with his full first name. The mention of Leiden, part of the monogram, became superfluous and even undesirable. He also left out the patronymic, the reference to his father's name Harmen. Rembrandt was ready for a new phase in his artist life.
Etching, 63 x 57 mm, PK-P-103.126.