Still-life with musical instruments

Roestraeten, Pieter Gerritsz. van (1629 or 1630-1700) (attributed to)

Item type:

painting

Date of creation:

17th century

Height:

39.3 cm  (15 1/2 in.)

Width:

58.0 cm  (22 13/16 in.)

Technique / Medium:

oil on copper

Description

This small painting on copper shows musical instruments, books with well-thumbed pages, an hour-glass, and a clock on a table with a colourful patterned cloth. All the objects relate to the popular still life theme of ‘vanitas’, which refers to the transience of life. Two stringed instruments, an upturned lute [possibly a mandore] in the background and a small bowed instrument known as a pochette or kit in the foreground, together with an oboe [or shawm], symbolise the ephemeral nature of music. The hour-glass and clock record time’s passage. At the top left is the artist's monogram. On the other side of the copper sheet is an unfinished painting of a man's head. (National Gallery of Scotland website)

Iconclass

11R6
'Vanitas' still life

Instruments [MIMO Code] (notes)

Kit [3571] (with bow)
Mandore [3512]
Oboe [4232]
Bow [2207]

Musical works

legible music notation
partially visible page in a song book

RIdIM images

Image URLs

image link 1

RIdIM record id

5770