‘Love reigning over the Elements’ is a symbolic work which promotes ideas of harmony and happiness. It shows the four traditional elements: ‘Earth’, beneath the figure, Love’s feet and ‘Water’ in front of him. ‘Fire’ is to the viewer’s left, with the sun and moon, representing ‘Air’ in the background. Burne-Jones made the design for his close friend, the designer William Morris. It was meant for a window in the home Morris made for Jane, his wife, ‘Red House’ and the finished design was placed in a corridor leading to the garden. The design is very similar to one by another friend of Morris, Dante Gabriel Rossetti entitled ‘Dantis Amor’, made in 1860 to decorate a settee and also meant for Red House. It relates closely to Dante Alighieri’s book ‘The Divine Comedy’ (written in the early 1300s) which ends with the line ‘Love that moves the sun and the stars.’

This design and "Fortune" made for Red House, possibly for the front door c.1861 and subsequently moved to the corridor, were the first stained glass made by Morris and Company, they re not mentioned in the Company's account books because they were for Morris' own use. The designs were later used for tiles for Birket Foster.

The Collection of the Guild of St George was moved to Meersbrook Park House in 1890, and renamed the Ruskin Museum. Ruskin’s original museum in Walkley was found to be too small for the collection and felt to be too difficult to get to. In addition, Ruskin’s chosen curator, Henry Swan had recently died. Whilst Ruskin insisted that the council should not own the collection itself, the display and maintenance of the collection became linked to the council from this date. William White, the first curator at Meerbrook was devoted to the ideas of Ruskin but nevertheless split the collection up into different rooms including a Gallery or Picture Room, Print Room, Turner Room, and Mineral and Cast Room. Ruskin intended all elements of the collection to be seen together and he refused to have anything to do with White or the Museum again. The museum closed in 1953 as interest in Ruskin had declined and the museum became too costly to run.