The engraving represents a complex composition that brings together key visual elements reflecting perceptions of the plague in the late Middle Ages and early modern period. At the center are depictions of physicians in characteristic protective clothing: long-beaked masks, gloves, staffs, and layered garments.
Alongside the medical motifs, the composition includes visual references to the explanatory models of disease common in that era. These include astrological diagrams, simplified hexagrams, illustrations of humoral theory, visualizations of the “corrupted air” (miasma) concept, and elements of architectural settings such as city gates, hospital interiors, and quarantine scenes.
The engraving follows a principle of rhythmic repetition: the visual elements are evenly distributed across the surface and integrated into a unified layout. This approach maintains visual cohesion and avoids the formation of a central narrative. Instead of focusing on individual motifs, the composition conveys a broader historical context in which disease was understood as a phenomenon with biological, social, and metaphysical dimensions.
Visual transitions play an important role in the structure. Medical fragments gradually shift into signs associated with magical or religious practices, while everyday objects appear alongside abstract diagrams. This technique reflects a characteristic aspect of the period’s worldview: the desire to integrate rational knowledge, empirical observation, and symbolic thinking within a single explanatory system.
The composition intentionally avoids separating medicine from occult symbolism. These spheres are presented as coexisting and interconnected, reflecting how they were applied in practice at the time. The engraving does not illustrate a specific scene but conveys a generalized impression of an era in which treatment, observation, fear, and belief were all part of the same experience.
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