A tightly packed group of six figures leans forward against a low wall, their faces drawn in animated conversation and debate. Each figure is distinct: on the far left, an elderly man with a long beard and a head covering gestures with his right hand, his expression intent as he listens to the man beside him. Next to him, a second man in a turban turns his head to the right, his eyebrows raised and lips slightly parted as if caught mid-sentence.

The third figure, wearing a broad hat with a prominent peak, looks directly at the man in the turban, his long beard and furrowed brow giving him a sense of authority. Behind these three, two smaller faces peer forward: one glances out from behind the hat, while the other, further back, is rendered with only a few lines, barely emerging from the shadow. On the far right, another elderly man with a thick beard and fur collar leans in, his hands folded and his gaze fixed on the central figures.

The background is densely cross-hatched, creating a deep shadow that frames the heads and intensifies the focus on their expressions and gestures. Rembrandt uses a lively, varied line: some areas, like the faces and hands, are finely detailed with delicate hatching, while the clothing and background are marked by broader, more energetic strokes. The composition is tightly cropped, with the figures filling nearly the entire sheet, their bodies overlapping and their arms and hands interlaced along the wall.