Helen Mary Gaskell, born in 1859, was the daughter of Canon Melville of Worcester and the wife of Captain Gaskell of the 9th Lancers who had visited the Middle East with Holman Hunt. Frances Horner introduced her to Burne-Jones in 1892. She became an important confidante of the artist. Part of her correspondence with Burne-Jones is in the British Museum and her collection of drawings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.
This painting dates from the early period of the relationship between the artist and the sitter. Its unfinished state points to this, as their intimacy grew, its objectivity was no-longer satisfactory. In a very short time the depth of Burne Jones' feeling increased and she became an essential part of his life.