This work was painted during the spring of 1883 at Nogent-sur-Marne, while Lavery was studying at the Atelier Julian in Paris. He would take life-classes in the morning but preferred outdoor sketching in the afternoons and and would often visit St. Cloud or Nogent. Later in the same year he discovered the artist community at the village of Grez-sur-Loing where he spent the majority of 1884.

The present work is closely related to a similar painting, 'La Rentree des Chevres' which was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1884, no.1433 (now untraced)

We are grateful to Professor Kenneth McConkey for his help in preparing this catalogue entry