From 1844 to 1856 Cox spent his summers in and around the village of Bettws-y-Coed in north Wales. On one of these visits, probably in 1847, he witnessed the funeral of a young girl, a relative of the landlord of the inn at which he stayed. The ceremony, which took place in the evening, evidently impressed Cox deeply. Several versions of this composition exist, both in oils and watercolour; this one is unusual in being in oil on paper.