The Harrowing of Hell

The scene is framed by a decorative geometric border. On the left, a nimbed angel stands with hands clasped, while Christ, wearing a halo and robes, gestures toward the hellmouth. With his right hand, Christ pulls Adam, who is nude and bearded, out of the mouth of a massive, green-scaled dragon-like creature. Eve, also nude, emerges from the creature's throat behind Adam. A cluster of smaller, indistinct figures representing the souls of the righteous are visible inside the hellmouth. Beneath Christ's feet, a small, dark, hairy demon is pinned to the ground. A sun with a face is depicted in the upper right corner. The composition uses thin, defined outlines and muted earth tones, typical of 12th-century Romanesque manuscript illumination.

This image illustrates the 'Harrowing of Hell' (Descensus Christi ad inferos), a key narrative in Christian theology based on the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus, in which Christ descends into the underworld between his crucifixion and resurrection to liberate the souls of the patriarchs.