Still Life with a Glass and Oysters
This still life was one of the first paintings acquired by The Met, part of the Founding Purchase of 1871. It combines some of the most frequent props of Dutch still life—a lemon peel, the type of glass known as a roemer, and oysters, which were believed at the time to have aphrodisiac properties. The diminutive scale indicates it was destined for a collector’s cabinet, meant to be pored over by a single viewer.
Artwork Details
- Title: Still Life with a Glass and Oysters
- Artist: Jan Davidsz de Heem (Dutch, Utrecht 1606–1683/84 Antwerp)
- Date: ca. 1640
- Medium: Oil on wood
- Dimensions: 9 7/8 x 7 1/2 in. (25.1 x 19.1 cm)
- Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: Purchase, 1871
- Object Number: 71.78
- Curatorial Department: European Paintings
More Artwork
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Jan Davidsz de Heem
ca. 1640–41
Rembrandt (Rembrandt van Rijn)
1640
Pieter Claesz
1628
Pieter de Hooch
ca. 1657
Jan Brueghel the Elder
1607
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