This drawing is loose copy of the bottom portion of an altarpiece by Leandro’s father Jacopo Bassano. Jacopo had painted The Adoration of the Shepherds in 1568 for the church of San Giuseppe in his native town of Bassano del Grappa (it is now in the Museo Civico there). The picture quickly became one of Jacopo’s most celebrated works and was widely copied. This drawing would have been used in Jacopo’s workshop by assistants who were frequently set the task of making painted reproductions of celebrated original works by the master. Compositions were often recorded in drawings as a memory aid, and there are other existing examples of Leandro and his brothers making copies after finished paintings.