This group was probably first modelled by Kändler in 1736 and an early version is illustrated by R. Rückert, Meissener Porzellan, Munich,1966, p. 206, no. 863. It appears to have been remodeled several times due to deterioration of the mould, with references to the reworking of the group appearing in Kändler's Arbeitsberichte in August 1738 and again in July 1741. This group was based on a 1723 engraving by Christoph Weigel, 'Troupe of Italian Comedians'. The woman can be identified as an actress and is most likely an inamorata playfully flirting or teasing of the elderly Pantalone. An example is in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London (C.22-1984). For other examples of this model, see A. Gräfin von Wallwitz, Celebrating Kändler, Meissen Porcelain Sculpture 1706 - 1775, Munich, 2006, pp. 90-93, cat. 14 and Maureen Cassidy-Geiger, The Arnhold Collection of Meissen Porcelain 1710-50, London, 2008, p. 262, no. 50.