 The panel was painted when the sitter was about 30 years old and is considered one of van der Weyden's finest portraits, in many ways a culmination of his later, more austere work.Van der Weyden sought to flatter d'Este; although not handsome, he is shown as broad chested, with a sensitive and cultured face, keen expression, long neck and aquiline nose.The hammer and ring (the latter only revealed after a 1934 cleaning) clutched in his hand are likely intended as status symbols although their exact significance has not been positively identified.