(Michael, via Katie Adam 28.9.05)

1. The image probably represents the dead man being greeted by a
saint after death and is therefore a hopeful projection of salvation
and resurrection. The saint is represented in the garb of a bishop
in order to locate him within a particular religious tradition.
Images of men embracing are apparently more common in the Orthodox
tradition than in the Catholic because the Orthodox church has
elevated a larger number of bishops to the status of saints. There
is no obvious Polish bishop but St Stephen is often represented in
this capacity. Similar scenes showing one man offering another a
welcoming embrace are often seen in images of the Last Judgement and
Resurrection. Look at Michelangleo's frescos for representations
of church figures greeting the faithful before their salvation and at
the National Gallery's first Leonardo da Vinci and its works by
Perugino and Raphael.

2. If the tomb owner commissioned this image as his memorial then he
was locating himself - optimistically - as one of those who will
achieve salvation so it is a kind of stone wish fulfillment.

3. The other possibility is that the tomb represents platonic male
love in the form of two saints meeting. This was apparently a common
feature of the pre-Renaissance iconic traditions. After that period,
representations of men with not-always-winged angels (Tobias and
Raphael) became a common aspect of Italian iconography. (At this
point, I was reminded of Philip Pullman's gay angels. I clearly
wouldn't cut it at the Courtauld...)