On a 16th-century plate, the musician Orpheus is depicted being informed of the death of his beloved Eurydice. He's sitting on a rock to the right, holding the violin bow, with the violin resting beside him. On the left, Eurydice lies dead on the ground. There is a personification of the river in the center. The city's buildings can be seen in the background, with obvious influences from 16th-century architecture.

The iconography is inspired by Ovid's Metamorphoses. The scene and inscription on the reverse are from the work "La favola di Orfeo" (The Orpheus' tale)  by the Italian poet and humanist Angelo Poliziano (1479-1480).