As a court painter for both Duke Alfonso I d’Este and his successor Duke Ercole II, Dosso Dossi was a central figure in the artistic circles of Ferrara for thirty years. Dossi was highly skilled at incorporating certain qualities of both the Venetian and the Roman schools without producing a style that was merely imitative. This painting belongs to a group of canvases that likely once formed a series representing ancient scholars, and served to decorate a noble library or studiolo. Long tought to have been a later addition, the lion depicted in the shadow at left was determined to form part of the original painting based on technical research, and as such should be interpreted as integral to the painting. Based in part on this attribute, the identity of the figure is interpreted as King David.