This was the only art contest in which Dalí participated, and the painting chosen for the film was Max Ernst's version of the temptation.

It depicts a desert-like landscape: a low horizon line with high clouds and dark, warm tones in an azure sky.

The temptations are led by Satan depicted in the form of a horse, who is seen by Dalí as at once beautiful, terrible and impossible, rearing up and turning away from Anthony's primitive wooden cross.

The form of the elephant, carrying on its back the golden cup of lust in which a nude woman is standing, emphasizes the erotic character of the composition.

In the background, another elephant carries a tall tower that displays phallic overtones, and in the clouds one can glimpse a few fragments of the Escorial, a symbol of temporal and spiritual order.

Saint Anthony is seen on one knee, holding out the cross against the advancing parade of creatures, topped with various representations of erotic imagery.

[citation needed] The rearing horse represents Satan, note the reverse of the hooves, leading the temptations mounted on the elephant's backs.