The oil painting is inspired by the heroine played by Sarah Bernhardt in the dramatic play "La Tosca". La Tosca is a five-act drama by the 19th-century French playwright Victorien Sardou. Sardou wrote La Tosca specifically for Sarah Bernhardt. She was in her mid-40s by then and France's leading actress. It was first performed on 24 November 1887 at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin in Paris, with Sarah Bernhardt in the title role.

The print is an antique photogravure or engraving titled "Sarah Bernhardt as La Tosca". It depicts the famous actress Sarah Bernhardt in costume for the title role of Victorien Sardou's play La Tosca. The scene shows her in a garden setting, interacting with a sculpture. The original artwork was created by Pinkney Marcius-Simons and produced as a print around the late 1880s or 1890s. The print is housed in an ornate, possibly gilded, frame with a dark green mat.

Measurements are approximate:

Naples Gallery Painting Set No: 0013