This is one of a pair of angels Luca della Robbia was commissioned in June 1448 to flank a tabernacle, now lost, in the Chapel of the Sacrament in Florence Cathedral. In February 1449 wood wings were provided for them, but these have since disappeared. Covered with a plain white glaze with the eyes and eyebrows picked out in blue, the borders of their robes were decorated with surface painting and gilding. The casts were made by Oronzio Lelli in about 1890 in Florence.

The cast is displayed in one of the two magnificent Cast Courts at the V&A. Since they were first opened in 1873, these galleries have displayed reproductions of some of the most significant monuments of medieval and Renaissance Europe. In these galleries one can view plaster casts of sculptures from Renaissance Italy, notably some of the masterpieces produced by Donatello, Luca della Robbia and Michelangelo.
The sculptures are faithful copies of the originals. They were made in the 19th century, when the vogue for replicated works of art was at its height. Museum visitors at that time generally had little opportunity to travel abroad, and illustrated art books were costly. These superb casts could afford people a rare glimpse of the original sculptures, even if they could not visit Florence or Rome. Artists and designers then and now could likewise sketch and learn from them. The painted surfaces of these reproductions often mirror the original stone or bronze, and the casts seem convincingly monumental. But they are made of plaster, a relatively fragile material.