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Born and trained in the Netherlands, Alma-Tadema settled in London in 1870. His small highly polished recreations of classical Rome were popular with well-to-do middle class collectors. All are signed and numbered in Roman numerals, this being 'opus CXXIX (199).' Here ‘Prose’ is a Roman quietly reading a scroll, with a sunlit sea, perhaps the Bay of Naples behind him. Its pair ‘Poetry’ hangs nearby. Alma-Tadema had an extensive knowledge of classical antiquities and concentrated on the archaeological accuracy of his lavish Roman settings. Combining such vivid detail with Victorian sentiment and naturalism, he deliberately made the past appear contemporary.