Heilige Pirminius toont Karel Martel de bouw van de abdij van Reichenau

The scene shows the bishop in his mitre and robes gesturing toward the rising stone walls of the abbey where laborers are actively building. At the bottom of the steps, several snakes slither away, referencing the legend of Pirmin purging the island of venomous creatures. The landscape beyond features a detailed view of a city and a distant horizon under heavy clouds.

Aegidius Sadeler was the imperial engraver for Rudolf II in Prague, a court central to the development of late Renaissance Hermeticism and natural philosophy. The inscription's reference to Pirmin as a 'Marsus' (a member of an ancient Italian tribe famed for snake-charming) demonstrates the period's habit of blending Christian hagiography with classical magical lore.