The oringinal massive marble vase on which this is based was discovered in 1771 in the papal territories. After its restoration, it was sold to the Earl of Warwick by Sir William Hamilton and is now in the Glasgow Museum in Scotland. Its fame was further enhanced by the prints of Piranesi which provided artists a way to copy in a variety of mediums such as silver, bronze, marble and terracotta. It is one of the most famous of antique vases known today. See F. Haskell & N. Penny, Taste and the Antique, 1981, page 67