A man with a white ruff and dark cap stands turned slightly to his left, his face lit by soft, even light against a plain, shadowed background. His right hand rests over his chest, while his left hand grasps a brown cloth at his waist. He wears a heavy, dark fur-trimmed cloak over a black garment, with the crisp folds of the ruff rendered in layered white brushwork.

The face is painted with remarkable attention to detail, showing a grey beard, gentle eyes, and the delicate flush of age in the cheeks and nose. To the right, a large open book lies on a table beside a black hat, its pages filled with lines of writing. The background is mostly a warm, muted brown, with subtle variations in tone that set off the figure and suggest depth.

Paint handling varies from the soft blending of flesh tones to the textured, lively strokes in the ruff and fur, creating contrasts of surface and light. The man’s left hand, holding the brown cloth, is illuminated by the same soft light that falls across his face, creating gentle shadows between his fingers. The open book on the table displays two pages filled with closely spaced, slanted lines of script, rendered in a muted brownish ink.

The table supporting the book and hat is painted in warm brown tones, with visible brushstrokes suggesting the texture of wood or fabric. The background transitions from a lighter, almost golden brown near the figure’s head to deeper, cooler browns at the edges and lower corners, enhancing the sense of depth and atmosphere. Rembrandt painted this portrait in 1633, as stated in the title and date line. The work is listed in the Rijksmuseum's collection under the title 'Johannes Wtenbogaert'.