c. 1663

Still Life

Dutch (active Amsterdam), 1619 - 1693

This unusually large canvas by Willem Kalf contains his typically restrained arrangement of exquisite tableware, including a huge ornamental metal beaker whose lid is surmounted by a lance-wielding angel. Behind it is a bekerschroef, a decorative mount for a glass that would be passed among people at a feast. The shell in the nautilus-style cup is ridden by the figure of the Roman goddess Fortuna. The faint suggestion of glassware, often through blurred reflection, is one of Kalf's signature techniques.