With the expansion of international trade in the final decades of the 1800s, American collectors turned their attention to foreign styles and ancient cultures. Their craze for “bric-a-brac,” or eclectic objects collected for their antiquity, rarity, beauty, or curiosity, also inspired many artists. In this work, Hall combines elaborate metal chargers and bowls from the Middle East with southern European antiques and textiles, including religious carvings, rosary beads, and a military helmet—perhaps a reference to historical conflict between the Christian and Muslim worlds.