Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
The Knight's Dream
Antonio de Pereda Spanish
Not on view
This celebrated painting includes a timepiece similar to the clock on view nearby, reflecting the widespread fame of Augsburg clockmakers. The subject of the Baroque vanitas picture is the ephemerality of the abundant luxury on display, which can be enjoyed only until death reveals the emptiness of human thought and ambition symbolized by the skulls. The young knight may dream of the riches promised by a superior military or clerical career—suggested by the crown, miter, and papal tiara—but the clock emphasizes time’s inescapable passage. The winged figure presents a cautionary banner that reads: "Eternally it stings, swiftly it flies, and it kills."
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