Completed in 1504 for the Franciscan church of San Francesco, Città di Castello, the painting depicts a marriage ceremony between Mary and Joseph.

It has since then been displayed in the Pinacoteca di Brera, in spite of an 1859 proposal to gift the painting to France after that country's army had entered Milan, and liberated them from Austrian occupation.

However, a 16th century documentary evidence supports the conclusion that Perugino had begun working on the painting in 1499, though it was not completed until some point after December 26, 1503.

[9][10] Although Raphael was heavily inspired by Perugino in painting the piece, differences between the two were remarked upon, within decades of the painting's completion, by 16th-century Italian artist and art biographer Giorgio Vasari, who said that in the piece "may be distinctly seen the progress of excellence of Raphael's style, which becomes much more subtle and refined, and surpasses the manner of Pietro.

In this work," he continued, "there is a temple drawn in perspective with such evident care that it is marvellous to behold the difficulty of the problems which he has there set himself to solve.