Vanitas artworks came about during a time of great religious tension in Europe, as it emerged as a defender of the Protestant mission of introspection. Vanitas paintings were seen not only as a mere work of art, but they also carried significant moral messages that saw them being considered as a type of religious reminder. A still life artwork which includes various symbolic objects designed to remind the viewer of their mortality and of the worthlessness of worldly goods . This is possibly due to the fact that the angel seems aware of her transience within the natural world, as she knows that her presence will be eternal in her afterlife. Through the act of painting and subsequently creating a beautiful artifact, a vanity was created that warned viewers against the dangers of other vanities in life. These ideas are depicted by the musical instruments, the ring on her finger, the map hanging on the wall in the background, as well as the clothes the mother and son are wearing. Frame (slightly irregular): 48 1/4 58 3/8 4 inches (122.6 148.3 10.2 cm), Gift of Louis V. Keeler, Class of 1911, and Mrs. Keeler, by exchange, The Leiden painter David Bailly was one of the best practitioners of that subset of the still life genre known as the vanitas. 2023. In addition to this, the oysters appear empty of both food and life and the rolled-up piece of paper is taken from a calendar. With a plethora of symbols referring to faith, fame and the liberal arts, but especially death such as Father Time, Death with his dart aimed at the artist, a putto with a skull, an hour-glass, smoking urns and a newly extinguished torch: emblems also frequently found on tomb monuments this is both a vanitas and a commemorative portrait. The Vanitas still life was said to teach viewers an important and moral lesson, as artists placed common vanities in contrast with an individuals eventual death. We also welcome less formal contributions for Monument of the Month and the Blog. The paintings were primarily designed to remind those who looked at it about the triviality of life and its pleasures, as nothing could withstand the permanence that death brought. The Vanitas genre made use of the still-life form in order to conjure up the transient quality of life and the vanity of living in the artworks that were produced. This was a category of paintings which used groupings of objects to comment on the fleeting nature of human endeavors, remind viewers that human life is transitory, and encourage piety. Whitney paired this emblem with a second one that depicts a table bearing an hourglass, a candle, and an open tome [fig. OMNIA . The background is deep in black shadow. These themes were then overemphasized in the paintings that were made and went on to be considered as essential qualities in the Vanitas artworks that followed. However, the concept that Vanitas paintings possibly evoke the most, in addition to mortality, is the harsh truth. The two self-portraits that are reflected in the silver candlestick epitomize this paradox. Get the latest information and tips about everything Art with our bi-weekly newsletter, The Relationship Between Vanitas and Religion, Cornelis Galle the Younger, depicting an allegory of death.