Heavy, brooding clouds hang over a snowy town square. Gabled houses line the left, and a snow-dusted Gothic cathedral rises on the right. Strings of small lights loop across the square and the market stalls glow amber at its edges, the only warmth in a palette of umber, olive and soft grey.

Dark-coated skaters move across the rink, and onlookers lean on its wooden barrier. In the foreground, two children kneel beside gift-wrapped presents under a snow-laden fir with a gleaming gold star. The thick, textured brushwork and fine cracking across the surface give the scene the look of an aged canvas.