A scene from the "commedia dell'arte" played in France before a noble audience, probably Flemish, possibly painted by a student of Frans Floris, according to the art historian Charles Sterling (1943, p. 18). It is one of the oldest images of the "commedia dell'arte" in France. Pantaloon is front and center on the stage. Just to to the right and slightly behind is an actor in motley costume, identified as Harlequin by both Duchartre and Sterling. The latter says it is "the oldest known version of Harlequin's costume."