There is some debate over the identity of the young man in this portrait, who is shown at three-quarter-length, facing half-left, with his eyes turned to the front. He wears a black coat buttoned to a high collar and brown gloves. His beard is also brown but his hair is black. He rests his right forearm on a column-base, which is inscribed 'AN XXV' and in shadow under the moulding '1545'. For a long time the picture was attributed to Titian, but it is now thought to be Tintoretto's earliest dated work, with the young artist relying on the formulae of Titian, as well as Central Italian models. The painting has been described as a self-portrait, or more commonly as a portrait of Ignatius Loyola.