The dog and the orrery are not so much the sitter’s personal possessions as attributes. The dog is a familiar symbol of fidelity and the orrery has been interpreted as a testimony to intellectual industry.

When acquired the painting was attributed to Parmigianino and this suggestion persisted until the twentieth century. The Master of the Jacquemart-André to whom it is now attributed, was probably a Bolognese portrait-painter working in the mid-sixteenth century. Some characteristics in the portrait can be found in Bartolomeo Passarotti’s paintings. The provisional appellation is derived from the artist’s most familiar work, The Lutenist, in the Musée Jacquemart-André, Paris.

Charles II conscientiously endeavoured to restore the status of the Royal Collection following the great loss of most of the collection formed by his father, Charles I.

The painting appears in Pyne's 'Royal Residences' of 1819, hanging as an overdoor in Queen Caroline's Drawing Room at Kensington Palace (RCIN 922151).