The large, opulent still life of exotic foods and luxury objects displayed on a marble table spread with a Turkish rug is characteristic of pronkstilleven.Painted during the second half of the seventeenth century, these ostentatious still lifes celebrated the prosperity the Dutch Republic earned largely from overseas trade. The play of light, color, and paint contribute to this painting’s sumptuous affect, while the mouse perched on the silver plate and the open watch remind the viewer that wealth, like material objects, is transient.
