It is probable that this watercolour was made during a holiday in Italy, possibly in the spring of 1890. In that year the Fine Art Society commissioned Wyllie to visit the Pas de Calais for the exhibition 'Holiday Drawings in France and Italy', which was held in 1892, and included watercolours made at Berck-sur-Mer as well as Italian subjects.

Wyllie favoured the elongated horizontal format and small size of this watercolour in the earlier part of his life, and such works were often sold to friends.