One of the works set into holy water stoup by Borromeo, who acquired the various pieces, four of them by Brueghel, separately between 1606 and 1618. The works have only the loosest iconographic connection.
On this particular one, Jan wrote to Borromeo in 1606 saying that if Borromeo would return it to him, he would add a sacred procession to it; so evidently he first sent an empty landscape. By August 25 the painting was back in Jan's hands, he had added the procession, and was ready to send it back to Borromeo.
Composition of this is based on Pieter Bruegel the Elder's Bird Catchers.
Pijl notes that the technique of painting on ivory with smalt was very rare in the 17th century; there are no other examples in Brueghel's oeuvre. All of these four tiny works are very well preserved, with translucent glazes that give the miniatures a gem-like quality.

Letter to Borromeo, April 1606. “l’alter quadrettini per fairre le procession, non e venuta” (Crivelli, pg. 65).

Letter to the Cardinal, 1606. “La circostanza della processione con atti di divozione gia accennata da Brueghel da tutta certezza della identita del quadretto. E questo un lavoro di miniature dipinta in un’ovale scodeletta di avorio… E la miniature poco piu larga dello spaccato di un uovo commune… qui pure il fiume ghiacciato con scivolanti, e de’ battelli strettu tra il ghiaccio; un ponte ad impianti e palacato di legno…mossi I corvi ed altri uccelli da inverno…ci vedi sotto il fuscelino a reggerla in bilico, e la di lei pesta nella neve o sparsarci del l’esca, e omai gia gia sotto due o tre corvi piu ghiotti, mentre tant’altri o si stanno come guardondoci su pei cespughli e I tronchi diintorno” (Crivelli, pg. 65).