Printed scraps were first produced in the early 19th century, to be used for decoration. Initially they were black and white engravings, but later were coloured by hand. By the 1820s they had become more elaborate and sometimes embossed, and within a decade both the printing and embossing processes were automated. The scraps were colour printed by chromolithography, then coated with a gelatine and gum layer to give a gloss finish. After being embossed they were die-cut and put through a stamping press to cut away the unwanted areas of paper, leaving the individual images connected by small strips, often bearing the name or initials of the maker.

In Victorian England scraps were popular with adults and children. They would be cut out and pasted into albums, or used to decorate greetings cards and to embellish screens and other household items. This scrap is one of a set of twelve produced by Siegmund Hildesheimer & Company depicting Shakespearean characters played by popular actors. They were sold in packs costing one shilling, titled Characters from Shakespeare. A Series of Twelve Relief Scraps. Henry Irving and Ellen Terry first played the sparring lovers Benedick and Beatrice at the Lyceum Theatre in October 1882.