Digital Collection
Vanitas Still Life, Peter Willebeeck
Peter Willebeeck
Vanitas Still Life
DE
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Peter Willebeeck

Vanitas Still Life, ca. 1650

Dimensions
88.8 x 73.7 cm
Physical Description
Oil on canvas
Inventory Number
1212
Acquisition
Acquired in 1892
Status
On display, 2nd upper level, Old Masters, room 8

Texts

About the Work

The skull and pistol give this still life by Peter Willebeeck a meaning that can be understood instantly, even by the modern-day viewer. They make it possible to identify a similar meaning in several other objects, for instance the clock that can show the passing of time but cannot hold it back, or the sound of the lute that ineluctably fades away. More subtly – though with equal clarity in the context of the objects already mentioned – the notion of transience is also conveyed by the fragile glass, the overturned goblet and the wilting flower.

Work Data

Basic Information

Title
Vanitas Still Life
Painter
Period Produced
School
Object Type
Physical Description
Oil on canvas
Material
Technique

Property and Acquisition

Institution
Administration
Collection
Creditline
Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main
Picture Copyright
Public Domain
Acquisition
Acquired in 1892

Work Content

Motifs and References

Genre
Main Motif
Associated Persons and Institutions

Iconclass

Primary
  • 11R6 'Vanitas' still life
Secondary

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Last update

22.03.2023