In the shimmer of a hot afternoon, Palm has depicted the Colosseum from the Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills of Rome. The Arch of Titus, which had been restored in 1819–1821, is visible in front of the Antique amphitheatre. The artist spent ten years studying in Rome from 1841. In his work, he used nature studies to help him absorb the influence of nature. Plein air painting had become increasingly common among foreign artists in Rome in the first decades of the 19th century.