This monumental group is inspired by a number of preceding treatments of the subject, many of them paintings which the artist doubtless knew in the form of prints. The eclectic nature of these sources makes the ivory difficult to place, and while it is generally agreed that it must date from the eighteenth century, it has been associated with Germany and the circle of Balthasar Permoser, but also with Spain, due to its relationship with the high baroque sculptures on the choir stalls of Salamanca Cathedral.