The plate was possibly in the sale by Clement de Jonghe (1679, as 13 conterf[eitsel] Van Rembr[andt]). It later appeared in the sale of Pieter de Haan (1767, lot 2) and was sold via Fouquet to Claude-Henri Watelet. It then became part of the set of plates subsequently owned and used for printing Recueils by Pierre-François Basan, Henri-Louis Basan (his nr 1374), Auguste Jean (ca 1809), Veuve Jean, Auguste and Michel Bernard (1846), Alvin-Beaumont (1906) and Robert Lee Humber (1937). It was sold at the Artemis sale in London (1993) and is now in a private collection in the USA.

In this self-portrait Rembrandt is 32 years old. In this period he portrays himself in a more formal setting, reflecting the prominent position he has reached. He dresses in costumes that are more 16th than 17th century, as can be seen in etching B 21 and in the painted portrait in the National Gallery (Corpus A 139).
The coat is etched in close, parallel lines instead of the cross-hatching normally seen in these sections.
It is one of the few portraits in which he wears a beard, rather than a moustache only.

Several authors pointed at a similarity with a 16th century engraving by Jan Gossaert.
An engraving made ca. 1519 by Lucas van Leyden (1494-1533), Young Man in a Cap with a Plume, and/or a portrait by Hendrick Hondius in 1610, (after the print by Lucas van Leyden, in reverse, probably a self-portrait) may also have served as an example. Rembrandt was well acquainted with the work of the most famous artist from his city of birth.

NH lists eight copies of which two in the same direction. Copy G is by Richard Girling (124 x 99mm). Copy H is by Freerk Los, inscribed Rembrandt F.|1638 (131 x 103 mm).
There are six copies in reverse. Copy A is by Constatino Cumano (131 x 105 mm, WB 1). Copy B is by Vivant Denon’s workshop signed KT nr 1 (132 x 103 mm, WB 3).
Copy C is by De Claussin with the head only (209 x 217 mm). Copy D is by Ignace Joseph de Claussin, signed Rembrandt 1638 (161 x 121 mm, WB 2).
Copies E and F are anonymous.

The etching is considered as special by Blanc and Dutuit.

NH lists four states, of which the final two not by Rembrandt. Most other authors list one state only, Biörklund and Nowell-Usticke list three states, from his 1st state there are later impressions by P.Basan, Basan, Jean, Bernard and Beaumont.
In the 1st state (NH only) the jaw under the left ear is not clearly defined.
In the 2nd state (NH/1st state WB, R74, BB, NU, P.Basan) the jaw is now delineated. A few lines are added to the shadow of the nose, under the right eye (NH). In early impressions the right cheek appears to bulge outwards (NU). In later impressions (by P. Basan) the bulge is corrected. The signature is hardly visible.
In the 3rd state (NH/2nd state NU P. and H. Basan) the plate is probably rebitten. There is a sharp line between the right ear and the cheek. The ear is clearly outlined. There is additional right-to-left shading in the last fold of the cap. A diagonal scratch runs from the upper left corner.
In the 4th state (NH/3rd state NU Jean, Bernard, Beaumont) the signature and date are brutally scratched in, according to NH by H.L.Basan. There is horizontal shading on the right ear. In later impressions (by Bernard?) the scratches in the background upper left are cleaned.
Münz thinks that the beard is later added by a pupil and considers the later impressions to be some sort of a 2nd state.
Hinterding mentions a second state in which the right shoulder, originally more steeply, is raised, resulting in the disappearance of the decorative pattern on the right shoulder under new shading lines.
The 1st state of Rovinsky (R73) is a falsified version, according to Hind and Nowell-Usticke.

NH lists only four impressions of the 1st state.
Nowell-Usticke considers the impressions in the Recueil de Basan (without rework) as good.

H 156, BB 38-B, G 25, M 134, Mz 22, RA 73-74, Cl 20, W 20, Bl 233, Du 20, CD 218
Rembrandt by himself 1999, p. 166; Hinterding 2008, p. 58-59; Dat kan beter! 2013, P. 40-41; Rosenberg 2017, p. 46-53;