Based on oil sketches by Rubens, this work was executed to hang upon a temporary triumphal arch erected in Antwerp in 1633 to welcome the new Governor of the Netherlands, Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand (1609 – 41). It is deliberately painted with a ‘broad brush’ as it was exposed to the elements and could only be seen at a distance. Acquired by Frederick, Prince of Wales, who also commissioned the frame Cat. 138