The preparatory drawings for his engravings served to define the compositions, to transfers them to the copper, and as a reference for engraving the final version. He almost always drew the outline in pencil first, and then drew the rest with red chalk. Bur sometimes these drawings were simply a starting point, which was later transformed in the engraving. Sometimes, as in this case, he would trim away some parts of the drawing and paste others on, to modify the original design and better fit his final idea.

Matilla Rodríguez, José Manuel, Ligereza y atrevimiento. Dibujos de Goya, Santander, Fundación Botín, 2017, p.55 n.20; 167 n.20