Like many anatomical representations of the human figure in the
16th-19th centuries, this one attempts to show the anatomy of the
living figure, not of the corpse. There were several reasons for
this convention: one was to make the work attractive to artists,
and another was to show the uses of the organs, not just their
topography.
This is a case which proves the success of that practice, as it
is a watercolour copy, by a 19th-century anatomy student, of an
engraving published in 1733 with the specific intention of
providing models for students.
It was designed by the surgeon William Cheselden (1688-1752),
who said "The actions of all the sceletons both human and
comparitive as well as the attitudes of every bone were my own
choice". In this case he has chosen to show the skeleton in the act
of praying to God. The action shows what happens when the arms and
legs are flexed, but it also carries deeper meanings. It can be
interpreted as a human being at the last judgment praying, too
late, for the remission of unconfessed sins, or as a contrast
between the pitiful ephemerality of human life and the omnipotence
of an eternal creator.