© The estate of Marek Szwarc

This portrait of a Jewish man from the Shtetl is likely to date from Szwarc's early period in Poland c. 1914-19, when he was a member of the Young Yiddish group co-founded by fellow Polish painter Jankel Adler, inspired by Jewish folk art and his Eastern European Jewish roots and heritage. The rope around the man’s neck probably denotes a trade, such as that of a rope porter (who carried heavy loads, such as water, furniture or food), a rope-spinner, or a worker in the burgeoning textile industry rapidly expanding in Poland during this period.