St. John the Baptist and St. Onuphirus

St Onuphirus was a monk who became a hermit because he wanted to fulfil his desire of imitating the solitude of the life of Saint John the Baptist. He retreated to the wilderness of Thebes in Egypt, where he endured the harsh desert condtions.

Durer uses the garland of hop leaves around Onuphirus's body to refer to the common depiction of him clad only in a garland of leaves.