A study for the painting illustrating Charles Kingsley's play 'The Saint's Tragedy' of 1848 and now in the Johannesburg Art Gallery (1851). The incident, depicted while Mass is taking place, refers to an act of humility as St Elizabeth removes her crown before a crucifix.

Collinson was a member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood from 1848 until 1850, when he resigned after converting to Roman Catholicism. He then entered the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) at Hodder Place near Stonyhurst in Lancashire, but left in 1854 to resume his career as a painter. This scene, as described by Colin Cruise, ' can be seen as an extreme version of the kind of Catholic imagery, that led to accusations of Pre-Raphaelitism as 'popish'.