The publication includes esssays on the function of Rubens' oil sketches and a glossary of terms and a discussion of collecting and appreciation of the sketches. The catalogue raisonné lists 460 bozzetti and modelli that the author considers authentic. The catalogue is organized thematically: oil sketches associated with cycles (Decius Mus, Jesuit Church at Antwerp, Life of Constantine, etc.), and individual sketches.