Skeletons Making Music from Dance of the Dead, Hans Holbein (II), 1538
paper, h 65mm × w 50mm More details
A crowd of skeletons prepares to parade in a macabre procession. Some of them blow trumpets and other wind instruments, one beats upon a pair of kettle drums. The solemn and stately sound of brass instruments, such as trumpets and trombones, was often associated with the Last Judgement and the Apocalypse. The image reminds us that all human endeavours are meaningless in the face of death.
