With its allegory of the symbolically linked hands and the mysterious motto, which still has not been satisfactorily explained, this miniature typifies the emblematic mystery encouraged by Queen Elizabeth I's Accession Day ceremonial jousts. These great public tournaments centred around the Queen receiving the homage of her young knights, each of whom presented her with a shield bearing an impresa, a combination of picture and motto ‘borne by noble personages to notify some particular conceit of their own’. In much the same way, this miniature - uniting portrait, allegorical symbol and obscure motto - becomes a single statement of the ideals and allegiances of the sitter, to be shared only with those within his intimate circle. The clasped hands are a symbol of concord and plighted faith, here presumably between the stylish young courtier and his lady. Such complex messages on portraits would have been determined by discussions between the sitter and Nicholas Hilliard, the artist.

Numerous scholars have tried to identify the sitter, variously, as: Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex; Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford; Lord Thomas Howard and, inevitably, William Shakespeare. Some of these identifications are more plausible than others, but for none is there sufficient evidence.