Ernst Meyer, of Jewish faith, deliberately chose the Portico of Octavia as the setting for this painting, making it the backdrop of his composition.
Erected in 147 B.C., rebuilt by Augustus in 27 B.C. and dedicated to his sister Octavia, this Roman monument—whose imposing remains stood in the heart of the Jewish Ghetto of Rome—held strong symbolic meaning. Meyer enriched it with other architectural elements, imaginatively rearranged, almost as if to create a theatrical stage set for his characters.