This intermediary sketch is a re-working of Laus Veneris (1861-62 Ex- Colonel Jekyll collection) . Venus is seated on couch by a window through which can be seen a group of knights riding by. The reason for the confusion with Dorigen (V&A collections 1871) is that the compositions are similar and the figure is dressed in blue, but the story of Dorigen involves the heroine gazing out to sea, waiting for the return of her lover. The atmospheric melancholy is shared with the final oil painting (Laing Art Gallery).