A masterpiece of French Baroque art and Caravaggesque tenebrism. La Tour constructs a deeply intimate, quiet scene: an aging Saint Joseph shapes a beam of wood with an auger, while the young Christ child shields a candle flame with his hand. The warm light glowing through Christ's translucent fingers subtly emphasizes his divine nature as the Light of the World (Lux Mundi). Beneath the humble genre setting lies a profound sacred allegory—the timber prefigures the wood of the Cross and the impending Passion.