This painting was acquired by Queen Victoria from the sale of the Louis Philippe, King of the French, held at Christie's between the 6 and 21 May 1853. In both the sale catalogue and the catalogue of Louis Philippe's 'Galerie Espagnole' (Notice des tableaux de la Galerie Espagnole exposés dans les salles du Musée Royal au Louvre, Imprimerie de Crapelet, Paris: 1838, No.306) the picture was called 'A woman in a red dress' and attributed to the school of Velazquez.

The sitter's dress suggests the painting dates from the 1630s; the second decade of the reign of Philip IV. The picture is finely painted in a manner in keeping with that of Velazquez and his circle at this date. A handkerchief is just visible in the sitter's right hand, indicating that the painting has been cut down, plausibly from a full length. The cloister with figures visible beyond the sitter's right shoulder may be part of one of Philip IV's palace complexes.