Study of a Man with Upraised Hand is a characteristic example of Ribera's pen work of the late 1620s. Drawn with confidence, the sheet features a bald man, portrayed in profile, draped in a cloak or toga and raising his hand. The assertive gesture might indicate he is addressing or admonishing someone beyond the page. Possibly depicting a figure from the ancient world, or an actor playing a role, this study fully attests Ribera's talent as draftsman: the spare, sweeping ink lines infuse the composition with an expressive charge, and the voluminous, angular folds of the figure's cloak appear similar to those found in the study for Saint Apollonia in our collection (1963.24.620), also a drawing of the mid 1620's.