[2][3] From The Hartford Courant: Ernst's Surrealist paintings are steeped in Freudian metaphor, private mythology, and childhood memories.

In his biography of the artist, John Russell identified these creatures as expressions of Ernst's fearful anticipation of the impending devastation in Europe during World War II.

[5] In this small painting, a gigantic, malevolent-looking bird couple marches forward with seemingly mile-long strides.

The strange patterns on the bodies of the main figures, which evoke fossils or geological formations, are the result of grattage (scraping).

In this technique, the artist coated the canvas, or in this case, a piece of cardboard, with layers of paint and while it was still wet pressed it against objects that left imprints on the surface.