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The plain marble sarcophagus is decorated with eight rectangular narrative reliefs which relate in a thoroughly classical narrative sequence the end of the career, the death, after-life and posthumous fame of a medical professor: a theme that could apply equally to either the older (Girolamo, d. 1506) or the younger (Marcantonio, d. 1511) Della Torre.
The picture shows the Illness of Della Torre. The scene is set outdoors, with draped clothing serving as the backdrop; Della Torre, his health failing him, is assisted onto a bed by attendants. While these attendants minister to the naked professor in the centre of the panel; on the left, the precariousness of his illness is fully illustrated by the presence of the Fates.
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