Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn: Self-portrait, aged 54 (1660)

(Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA)

The last 10 years of the life of Rembrandt was a hard one for him. Other painters were becoming more populair and Rembrandt lived beyond his means, buying art, prints and rarities, which caused him to go bankrupt in 1656. The bankruptcy was settled in court and most of the paintings and antiquities of Rembrandt were sold at an auction. He had to sell his house and moved with Hendrickje Stoffels to a smaller house. Despite this Rembrandt painted some his best known work - famous paintings like the portrait of Jan Six (1654), The Conspiracy of Claudius Civilis (1661), Syndics of the Drapers' Guild (1662) and The Jewish Bride (1665) were made in this period. This self-portrait comes from 1660 and shows the master at the age of 54