Frederic Lord Leighton’s activity as a landscape painter was relatively unknown during his lifetime. However, in his Italian sojourns of the 1850s and 1860s he had the opportunity to learn the practice of outdoor painting, following the ideal example of Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot.

In Italy, especially Rome, Leighton became friendly with painters such as George Heming Mason and Giovanni Costa, who both influenced and were influenced by his artistic personality. These painters considered themselves descendants of the Classical landscape painting tradition.

Leighton’s tendency to relate his art to the past became important for painters of the following generation, such as Giovanni Boldini.