The Angel Locking the Mouth of Hell

This illumination shows a large, beast-like head representing Hell, its wide, circular maw filled with a chaotic mass of nude, tormented figures and clawed demons. To the left, a winged angel in profile holds a large iron key, inserting it into a bolt on a red vertical barrier that seals the monster's jaw shut. The creature of Hell features a prominent, staring eye and scale-like textures, while the entire composition is contained within an elaborate, geometric decorative border typical of Romanesque manuscript illumination.

This image is a prominent example of the 'Hellmouth' motif, a standard iconographic feature in medieval Western art derived from the Harrowing of Hell as described in the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus and later Christian eschatology.