Explore the Context of this artwork, The Tribute Money (Titian).
The figure of the pharisee has been claimed as a self-portrait by Titian, who was in his late twenties at the time.  The same claim has been made for several figures painted in narrative scenes by Titian, notably, and perhaps more convincingly, the severed head of John the Baptist in his Salome (Doria Pamphilj Gallery in Rome and other versions), which is very close in date to this painting, and where the head does not much resemble the one here.  Both paintings are examples of narrative subjects drawing on Titian's skill as a portraitist, as well as forming part of a number of paintings using the Giorgionesque type of composition showing two or three tightly cropped half-length figures with their faces close together, heightening the drama of their interaction.  Other examples of this type are Lucretia and her Husband and The Bravo, both now in Vienna, and The Lovers (Royal Collection).
Salome John the Baptist Rome Lucretia and her Husband Titian self-portrait The Bravo Royal Collection Giorgione Giorgionesque Doria Pamphilj Gallery