Allegory of Life and Death

The existence of this allegory, for which the title Meditation of a Young Gentlemen on Death seems most appropriate, was virtually unknown until 1997, the year the government purchased it on the antiquarian market. The allegorical theme can be described as the following: in the darkness of his study, with sad awareness, a young gentleman tempered by philosophical studies - the volume on which he has placed his left hand - is meditating about death, represented by the two skulls. Behind him, a girl futilely tries to get his attention, while in front of him an older man, possibly his teacher, looks at him sympathetically.

The nocturnal scene is Honthorst’s invention, the Utrecht painter’s influence is powerful in this work.