Wearing black, with a broad, Spanish-style ruff collar and a three-strand necklace that she grasps in her right hand, this lady is presented to the viewer as serene and haughty. The influence of Anthonis Mor (1519-1576) on the conception of this portrait is appreciable in its verticality and its strictly black background. While the model's clothing is of an earlier style, this work has been dated around 1628, coinciding with the last portraits this artist painted in Genoa. It has much in common with those works, including the sober palette, the solemn expression and the profound psychological grasp of the model. The origins of this work are unknown, but it is first documented in Madrid's Alcázar Palace in 1686.