Portrait of an Ecclesiastic

French 15th Century

National Gallery of Art

Shown from the waist up against a vivid red background, a pale-skinned, cleanshaven man looks off to our left in this vertical portrait painting. His body is angled to our left, and his head tilts down so he looks in that direction from under faint eyebrows. He has bags under brown eyes, sunken cheeks, and soft jowls. He has a rounded nose and wide chin. His pale pink lips are closed and the far corner appears to be pulled slightly back. A close-fitting brimless black cap nearly covers his gray hair, and he wears an inky-black cloak over a black robe. His hands are together in prayer in the lower left corner of the panel, and the background is scarlet red.