This relief now has a separate later plinth. The moulded plinth was probably made in the 19th century. It has three pieces of inlaid lighter wood at the front, with a blank escutcheon in the central part.
The sculpture shows the fainting Virgin supported by St John and a female figure, possibly St Mary Magdalene.
It is an interesting example of how certain reliefs were changed when they were divorced from their original settings during periods of religious upheaval. This sculpture was originally part of a larger composition that told a religious story. A carver has converted it into a single religious image. As a single image it might have been mounted on a wall, or may have been used for private prayer. A third possibility is that a dealer turned what was originally part of a work of art into a complete piece by adding false details. If this is the case, the meaning of the group has been completely changed. Here the fainting Virgin is being helped onto a splendid bench. (In fact there were no benches like this when Jesus was crucified.) She is no longer shown swooning away from the sight of her crucified son. Instead she has become the centre of attention rather than a detail in the central scene of the Crucifixion.