This is a student drawing by Rossetti, made at some time in the 1840's. It may represent a 'tete d'expresseion', an atttempt to represent a particular emotion through facial expression. Facial expression in art was first codified in the seventeenth century by Le Brun and his work remained a staple of academic education. Rossetti could have studied the subject at the Royal Academy or through Ford Madox Brown. It is interesting that, in this early work, Rossetti shows an interest in the large- eyed, full-lipped facial type, to which he would return in the late 1860's, and which has created the image of the 'Rossetti woman'.