Hardly any other type of painting stands as exemplarily for the Baroque as Vanitas still life, the two guiding principles of that epoch, "Memento mori" ("remembering to die" or figuratively: "Remember your mortality") and "Carpe Diem" ( "Use the day"), and symbolize the transience of all being. An element in vanitas still life often used by Pieter Claesz is the skull. But also burning candles or incense sticks as well as empty drinking vessels and watches of all kinds are typical for those pictures. Thus, this is perhaps the most characteristic of the works of the Dutch Baroque, for it contains those symbols of transience that were most frequently picked up by the painters of this epoch.

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A Vanitas Still Life by Pieter Claesz. Available as an art print on canvas, photo paper, watercolor board, uncoated paper or Japanese paper.
spectacles · glasses · skull · goblet · pocket watch · still life · book · books · feather · knowledge · learning · Johnny van Haeften Gallery, London, UK / Bridgeman Images