The present painting is most probably part of a series commissioned by Cardinal Flavio Chigi for his newly-built palazzo in Ariccia, near Rome. Of this series, four paintings were well known, being still in their original location; whilst two have recently appeared, and are respectively with Robilant+Voena and in a Milanese private collection. Although the present work cannot be directly linked to the original commission, as there is no record of it in the payment documents in the Chigi archives, due to both its composition and style, it almost certainly has to be considered part of the Chigi series.

Cardinal Flavio Chigi commissioned the canvasses in November 1664 probably to celebrate the visit of his uncle, Pope Alexander VII, to his Ariccia villa. In each painting a dog is portrayed in front of a different view of the many Chigi estates. Cardinal Chigi was a passionate hunter, and such a commission certainly has to be related to this passion of his. In addition to the Ariccia series, Michelangelo di Campidoglio is known to have produced another twelve portraits of dogs for Cardinal Chigi, six of which to decorate his Villa in Versaglia.

Flavio Chigi was one of the most prominent collectors and patrons of his time. His Roman palace in Piazza Santi Apostoli and his various country villas were adorned with an outstanding collection of antiquities (most of which were sold to the Court of Dresden in 1734), with Old Master paintings dating back to the 15th century, as well as with contemporary works of art, such as sculptures by Bernini and Salvator Rosa.

The Chigi archives, published by Vincenzo Golzio in 1939, were fundamental in the reconstruction of Michele Pace’s work in animal painting. Prior to that date, the artist had been known strictly for his still lifes, and since the 18th century he had fallen into near oblivion. These Portraits of Greyhounds testify to Michelangelo del Campidoglio’s desire to elevate to its highest level the genre of dal naturale painting. His style champions the naturalism that had emerged already in the work of Michelangelo Cerquozzi (1602-1660), and which would be further developed over the course of the second half of the 17th century by Abraham Bruegel (1631-1697) and, later on, by Frans Werner Tamm (1658-1724).
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