Howard had a long standing admiration for Burne-Jones. He took his fiancé to see the artist's Saint Frideswide window in Christchurch Oxford, and sought his friendship soon after his marriage in 1864. He asked Burne-Jones to teach him painting and the artist, unwilling to undertake this role, recommended Legros.(1) Burne-Jones, with some collaboration from Walter Crane, decorated Howard's dining room at No.1 Palace Green with the story of Cupid & Psyche. This drawing could have been made at any time in the 1870's when Burne-Jones wore his beard long in this style. The most likely date is August 1874 when Burne-Jones visited Howard at Naworth, a visit which is also commemorated in Howard's photograph album. 1. Information from Timothy Wilcox
According to entries in Rosalind Howard' diaries her husband George became a pupil of Burne Jones for drawing in 1866., and began studying under Alphonse Legros for oil painting in 1866.