Allegorie op de ijdelheid (de Dood en het meisje) 1608 - 1612

This allegory of vanity was made in print around 1600 by Andries Stock after a design by Jacob de Geyn. It invites us to reflect on the fleeting nature of beauty, wealth, and earthly pleasures. The image presents a richly adorned woman surrounded by symbols of luxury: jewelry, fine fabrics, and precious objects. But behind her lurks a skeleton representing death, holding an hourglass as a memento mori. Created in the Netherlands during the Dutch Golden Age, a period of unprecedented economic prosperity, this print speaks to the cultural anxieties of a society grappling with its own success. The rise of merchant capitalism and global trade brought new levels of affluence, but also moral and spiritual concerns about the corrupting influence of wealth. To fully understand this image, we might research the religious and philosophical ideas circulating at the time, as well as the material culture of the Dutch elite. Through such historical contextualization, the role of art emerges as a mirror reflecting and challenging the values of its society.