Nollekens went to Rome in 1762, where he studied and worked as an antique dealer and restorer, before returning to London in 1770.

This drawing is a study of an ancient fresco that was discovered in Rome in about 1600. There are a number of theories about the subject of the painting. One suggests that it represents the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, the parents of Achilles, the hero of the Trojan War.

Nollekens would have made this close study from the original fresco when it was still in the possession of the Aldobrandini family. It is now in the Vatican Museum’s collection.