Wealthy princes, nobles and scholars prized objects made from imported natural materials that were transformed into new forms by skilled carvers. They commissioned and collected such objects, displaying them according to the type of material in small rooms set aside for the purpose. This ivory ship, made more precious by the addition of gold, diamonds and enamels, is a rare example of a highly-wrought object made of an imported natural material that would have appealed to such collectors.
Nothing is known of the circumstances in which this model was commissioned. A similar, though larger, ivory and gold model frigate is preserved in the collections of the Dukes of Saxony, in the Green Vault at Dresden. The Dresden example (dated 1620) was made by Jacob Zeller for the Prince Elector Christian II of Saxony. The similarities between the two ships suggest the one now in the V&A may also have originated at Christian's court.