Lot Essay
Perugini was born in Naples, but after having trained in Italy and under Ary Scheffer in Paris, he moved to London in 1863. There he was supported financially by Leighton and it is possible that he worked as his studio assistant. Certainly the high degree of finish in his paintings owes much to Leighton and their shared Continental training. He was married to Kate, daughter of Charles Dickens, and widow of Charles Allston Collins. The present lot is a sketch for a picture exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1902, no. 355.