Eertvelt was one of the earliest Flemish marine painters and one of several artists whom collector Eric Palmer was concerned to rediscover and reinstate in the history of the subject. He was very highly regarded in his own day, had his portrait painted by van Dyck in 1632, and specialized in battle scenes. This view represents a commonplace subject for Flemish and Dutch seascape of the period, showing a fascination with the Muslim near East in its evocation of an imaginary North African port