Still-Life with Weapons and Banners

1636 · Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Braunschweig

still-life

It can hardly be a coincidence that armour and weapons often occur in still-lifes painted during the Thirty Years' War. This war, which caused unimaginable suffering, was originally started by the Spanish-Austrian House of Habsburg together with the League of the Roman Catholic Estates of the Empire. They were committed to the Counter-Reformation and wanted to re-catholicize the rebellious Republic of the United Netherlands after it had become independent in 1609, and in particular to conquer the economic resources of this wealthy country.

Loading map…

About the Artist

Willem de Poorter

1608 – present

Dutch painter, probably a pupil of Rembrandt. He painted history paintings (especially biblical subjects). His small biblical and allegorical pictures can be connected with Rembrandt's last years in Leiden and first years in Amsterdam, but it is not known if he actually worked in Rembrandt's studio. In his late phase de Poorter also created still-lifes. His still-life paintings of flags and military equipment piled in dramatically lit grottoes hover between the works of Rembrandt and Bramer, without ever capturing the intensity of the former or the fantasy of the latter.

View all works →