Ars Moriendi
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The Devil's Final Assault
The Woodcut
In a last effort, all the demons attack together — a chaotic swarm of grotesque forms pressing down on the dying man. The scene is visually overwhelming, a wall of demonic faces.
The Text
At the last hour the devil assaulteth most fiercely, for he knoweth his time is short. All five temptations may return at once, and the dying man must resist them all or fall.
The coordinated final assault mirrors the medieval understanding that death is the moment of maximum spiritual danger — and therefore maximum spiritual opportunity.