This work was painted as a pair with Landscape with Christ and the Pharisees. Both are excellent examples of the classical landscape art of the second half of the 17^th century. This work is fundamentally influenced by the great works of Claude de Lorrain in terms of the organisation of the space and the treatment of light.

The attribution to Pierre Patel, as in the case of the other painting in the pair, makes sense but requires more careful verification.  There are several French artists who also travelled to Italy and succeeded in capturing the emotion and strength of the classical ruins which they came across in the countryside around Rome, in their vision of nature.

In this case, the Apollo Belvedere under a porch in ruins is of particular importance in the foreground, as are the buildings in the background with arches, round towers and funeral pyramids. Apart from the archaeological interest of the statue, the artist obviously wanted to evoke the medieval motif of the ancient idols that crumbled as the Holy Family went past on their way to Egypt.

Alfonso Pérez Sánchez