In this poignant artwork, a young nun digs a grave, her face set in concentration yet tinged with a hint of trepidation. Clad in traditional flowing robes, her posture suggests both dedication and sorrow as she plunges the spade into the earth. The scene is delicately orchestrated, revealing a graveyard's somber beauty, with muted tombstones standing like sentinels behind her. The second nun, seated on an adjacent grave, appears pensive, perhaps lost in reflections about mortality. Her expression speaks volumes; there’s a weight of contemplation, suggesting a shared understanding of sorrow or impending loss.

The composition is richly layered, with the earth-toned palette exuding an atmosphere of tranquility, despite the subject's heaviness. Shadows play gently across the landscape, softening the starkness of the grave markers and creating depth in the background's foliage. Millais masterfully balances light and shadow, enhancing the emotional impact of the scene. This work draws the viewer into a moment that is at once serene and sorrowful—a meditation on life, death, and the sacred duties of the cloistered life. Set against the backdrop of Victorian England, this piece resonates with themes of duty and the often-hidden emotional struggles of women in religious life.