These two figures are seen from behind so that the viewer may participate in their communion with nature. One has often been identified as Friedrich himself, and the other is Friedrich's disciple August Heinrich (1794–1822). Fascination with the moon ran high among the German Romantics, who regarded the motif as an object of pious contemplation. This is the third version of one of Friedrich’s most famous compositions, the first of which was painted during Heinrich’s lifetime (1819; Albertinum, Dresden) and the second soon after his death (ca. 1824; Nationalgalerie, Berlin).