Artist Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema is recognized as one of the masters of Victorian painting. When he settled in England in the 1870s, his mature style had already evolved, and connoisseurs eagerly embraced the work of this talented artist. Responding to the serene beauty of paintings such as Coign of Vantage and Silver Favourites, Victorian audiences clearly appreciated how Alma-Tadema captured the era's sense of nostalgic longing for a lost Golden Age.

Laurens Alma-Tadema was born in the Dutch village of Dronrijp in 1836. His early works contain subtle but compelling similarities to the art of the Dutch masters. In the 1860s, however, the artist traveled to Italy, and it was a trip that literally changed his life. For it was during this expedition that Alma-Tadema encountered the ruins of the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Fascinated by this civilization, and especially by the details of daily life, the painter began his fruitful study of ancient Rome. And indeed, Roman (and to a lesser extent, Greek) archaeology, art, and culture became Alma-Tadema's lifelong passions. This interest in all things Roman is evident in many of Alma-Tadema's works. From his early so-called "Pompeian period", when he tended to favor depictions of interiors with Pompeian red walls, to his later more sentimental works, Alma-Tadema has left us a legacy of beautiful and evocative paintings.