Lot 2096 Dα

This teeming composition shows numerous items arranged on a gold embroidered cloth, including a human skull, a clock, precious jewellery, and a crown. An inscription on a banderole in the lower left reiterates the obvious message of the work: “VANITAS VANITATUM ET OMNIA VANITAS”. This quotation, drawn from the Old Testament (Ecclesiastes 1:2), refers to the transitory nature of all earthly things. Edwaert Collier illustrates this theme in a rich allegory, culminating in a human skull in a laurel wreath, which leaves no doubt as to the finality of human life.
This kind of still life serves not only to illustrate the vanitas motif; it also provides artists with an opportunity to test their skills in developing complex compositions and capturing a multitude of textures and surfaces. Collier achieves this brilliantly in the present work. It is an excellent example of his opulent vanitas still lifes, which enjoyed great popularity, along with his trompe l'œils. The artist was active in Leiden from 1667 to 1693, after which he probably moved to London. Aside from a temporary return to Leiden, he remained in the English capital until his death.
The present work is registered with the RKD in The Hague under the no. 111479 as an original work of Collier. Two comparable works of a similar size are housed in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (102.5 x 132 cm, inv. no. A 3471) and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (94 x 112 cm, inv. no. 71.19), both dated 1662.