Following the loss of their only son in panel 16, the old couple continue their journey to the shrine of St Nicholas, where, to their amazement and delight, they find their son alove and well, still holding the original golden cup, which the grateful father now gives to the shrine as promised.

This story of a would-be pilgrim punished for failing to complete a pilgrimage or not honouring a promise to a saint's cult, is a common one in medieval hagiographies, both textual and visual. There are countless such episodes in the Miracles of Thomas Becket, some of which appear in the windows at Canterbury. The function of such a topos in discouraging idle promises is obvious.