This work once formed the center section of a large altarpiece. The small man kneeling in prayer wears the robe and tonsured haircut of a monk or friar. His diminutive size, lack of a halo, and posture of reverence indicate that he is not a heavenly being. He is, in fact, the donor who commissioned this altarpiece, probably for the church of his own convent.

During recent conservation, fragments of the artist's signature were discovered at the bottom of the panel.