Friedrich places the perspective of this nocturne almost at water level. A red-violet, warm tone unites the swans with the reed grass and the sky, in which the crescent moon and evening star glow. Beside the large-format landscapes for which Friedrich is famous, he also consistently produced small-format works that show a silent world from close up as if in an intimate dialogue. In 1820 the painting was at the academy exhibition in Berlin and was met with criticism and derision but also admiration.