A man sits slumped forward at a desk, his head buried in his arms, with his face hidden from view. Around him, a swarm of owls and bats emerges from the darkness, filling the air above and behind him. Three owls perch directly behind the man, their large eyes wide open and staring outwards, while another owl spreads its wings as if about to take flight.

Bats with outstretched wings fill the upper half of the composition, their forms rendered in dark, dense hatching that contrasts with the lighter ground below. The scene is set in a shallow, undefined space, with no background except the swirling mass of creatures and the shadowy, textured sky. Light falls from the left, illuminating the man's white clothing and the surface of the desk, while the background remains shrouded in shadow.

The etched lines vary in density: fine hatching and stippling create the misty, nocturnal atmosphere, while bold, dark strokes define the animals and the man's figure. On the front of the desk, the inscription 'El sueño de la razon produce monstruos' is clearly visible, integrated into the composition as a central element. To the left of the man, several pencils or etching tools are scattered on the desk, their slender forms aligned parallel to the edge.

The lower left edge of the composition is bordered by a wide, pale margin, framing the scene with an irregular, hand-drawn line. In the upper right, a dense cluster of bats flies into the distance, their silhouettes overlapping and fading into the textured, grainy background. The background is rendered in a uniform, speckled gray tone, with no discernible horizon or spatial depth, emphasizing the flatness of the print. This work, titled De slaap van de rede brengt monsters voort, was created by Francisco Goya between 1797 and 1799.

The Rijksmuseum's record gives the dimensions as 214 mm by 150 mm and identifies the technique as etching.