Self-Portrait by Rembrandt Van Rijn

Rembrandt, widely considered the most important of the Dutch Masters and among the greatest European painters of all time, remains one of painting's great heroes, to art lovers and aspiring artists alike. Rembrandt was best known for portraits in which meticulously detailed faces emanate from the darkest of shadows. Though he enjoyed great success as a young painter, his later life was marked by tragedy and financial misfortune. Rembrandt created a number of self-portraits throughout his life. In this one, painted in his later years, Rembrandt honestly depicts the care-worn expression and aging features of a man in decline.