The Forum Romanum was the site of the weekly cattle market until the 19th century and was therefore known as Campo Vaccino. The ox carts can be seen behind the columns of the Temple of Dioscuri. The Norwegian Fearnley was one of the leading landscape painters of his generation. He came to Rome in 1832 after studying with Dahl in Dresden. There are many oil studies by him from southern Italy, but hardly any from Rome. The date should probably be read as ‘May 12’. This would make 1835 a possible year of origin, and the picture would have been painted as a farewell painting a few days before his departure to the north.