Gossaert, sometimes called Jan Mabuse after his possible birthplace at Maubeuge in Wallonia, was an important figure in the Antwerp Mannerists school of the early 16th century. He is centrally situated between Jan Van Eyck's mediaeval tradition and Rubens' Baroque and was a main proponent of the Renaissance currents coming out of Italy, where he travelled at a time when both Michelangelo and Raphael were working in Rome.

The portrait is oil on wood, measuring 61 x 45cm, and shows a fashionably dressed gentleman, who was long thought, on the basis of a coat of arms, to be Frank Van Borselen, the fourth husband of Jacqueline of Bavaria. Since restoration, however, the arms have been revealed to be a later addition, so that identification is incorrect.

The restoration also removed a thick layer of yellowed varnish, restoring to the painting its original vibrant colours and contrasts. The painting was re-attributed to Gossaert by the exhibition's curator, Maryan Ainsworth.

The painting was originally donated to the KMSKA in 1841 by former Antwerp mayor Florent Van Ertborn, together with works by Van Eyck, Memling and Rogier Vander Weyden.

The Met exhibition Man, Myth and Sensual Pleasures: Jan Gossaert's Renaissance, runs from 6 October to 17 January before moving to the National Gallery in London.

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