Jan Baptist Weenix was born in Amsterdam and trained first under Jan Micker, then Abraham Bloemaert in Utrecht, and later back in Amsterdam under Claus Moeyaert. The four years the artist spent in Italy between 1643 and 1647, however, were arguably the most formative of his career. It was here that Weenix became enchanted by Rome and the campagna, studying the classical ruins and pastoral life which would define his later output.

Weenix sets a genre scene within an imagined, Italianate landscape: a mother nurses her child against a picturesque backdrop with a ruined temple, a pyramid, a watering hole, and a harbour beyond. The recession of the landscape and the distinctive, hazy Mediterranean light are typical of Weenix’s production after his return from Italy. Dr. Wagenberg-Ter Hoeven dates this picture to circa 1650, situating it among similar scenes with relatively small figures set against monumental architecture, a type which proved popular with the Utrecht market.

The picture appeared in an enlarged format when sold in these Rooms in 1966, with a large tree added to the right of the composition.