The mendicant friar, one belonging to a religious order dedicated to supporting themselves and the activity of their convent through begging, is just about to enter the doors of his order's religious house, carrying his money box, when death seizes him by his friar's cowl and drags him away. The frightened friar is trying to pull away from the bony hands of death but it is no use.
Note the hourglass in the left hand corner, which adds to the symbolic meaning of this piece.
Previous: The Priest
Next: Nun
Holbein - the Dance of Death.
