Gramatica was a late Baroque, early Renaissance painter in Rome, who worked with Caravaggio. He was famous for his paintings of the heads of famous men. In this piece, he represents the sisters Praxedes and Pudentiana, who were wealthy virgins in the second century. The young sisters were committed to serving persecuted Christians, often caring for wounds or preparing bodies for proper burial. In this scene, the sisters are painted with halos indicating their saintly status.

The emotion of the moment is captured is the understanding glance between the sisters. Their work is hard; their work is bloody, but they have been faithfully serving the persecuted Church in the face of persecution themselves. One is holding a jug of what appears to be bloody water, and the other is wringing out a bloody sponge into a bowl. In this instance, we can not ascertain if they have been tending to wounds or preparing bodies for burial, but the gravity of the moment is portrayed. A legend was spread that the sisters collected the blood into a well that was installed in their church. The background of the painting is dark, showing where they have surely come from. The light source is brilliant in front of them, shining in approval on their important service to the Lord and his people.