The youthful apostle with long flowing hair and clothed in vibrant green and red fabrics sits within a study surrounded by a number of his attributes. Characteristics of the Dürer Renaissance are found in the soft modelling, in the golden light that highlights John's features, and in the print hanging on the wall which is based on Dürer's 1514 engraving of Virgin and Christ Child standing on a Crescent Moon. The painstaking detail with which Gärtner completed this work is particularly visible in the soft golden wisps hair surrounding John's face as well as in the rendering of the clear glass bottle on the ledge near the print.
