A Victorian-era steam locomotive in green and red, trimmed with brass domes, a bell, a lantern headlamp and gold filigree, plows through deep snow and fills most of the frame. Its tender is heaped with a decorated Christmas tree hung with colorful glass ornaments and with wrapped presents tied in gold and red ribbons, while a cream-colored plume drifts from the flared smokestack.

Distant snow-covered village houses with glowing yellow windows sit at the edges beneath snowy evergreens. A soft golden winter-dusk glow warms the horizon, with steam and powdery snow billowing around the wheels. Aged paper grain, faint craquelure and light speckling give the finely detailed painting the worn look of an antique Christmas postcard.