Still Life with Fruit and a Lobster, ca. 1650

Out of a dark background, there emerges a still life composed of fruit – plums, a tangerine, a lemon, white grapes, a half-peeled orange on a pewter plate, apricots and walnuts – together with a boiled lobster, a brown earthenware jug with a pewter lid, a fluted glass of red wine, a goblet filled with white wine and a glass beaker with beer. One object immediately catches the eye: the pocket watch. Timepieces were typical symbols of transience, and they are often found in vanitas paintings.