Nollekens designed some of the exterior decorative features for Somerset House in London. This drawing is an initial idea for the keystones that cap the arches near to what is now the entrance to The Courtauld Gallery. He made the sketch on the back of a letter relating to a commission for Lord Newborough.

The Courtauld Gallery moved to Somerset House in 1989. The building formerly housed the Royal Academy of Arts, where in 1772 Nollekens became a Royal Academician.