Still Life with Half a Herring, ca. 1620

ArtistGeorg Flegel, Olmütz 1566–1638 Frankfurt am Main

Oil on canvas

Dimensions without frame51,3 × 74,3 cm

Status

on display, room 004

About the workLuxury and frugality are combined in this meal: in addition to the bread, the wilted radish and the herring – a typical Lenten dish – are ornate glasses and a citrus fruit, which were very expensive at the time. The contrast suggests an appeal for abstinence, since still lifes like these were often intended to decorate the dining rooms of the wealthy bourgeoisie. Georg Flegel, who worked in Frankfurt, is considered the first German still life painter. Stacked objects, such as the arrangement of plates and bread on the left of this picture, are typical of his oeuvre.

AccessionAcquired by exchange 1935

Provenance[...]; mind. 1921 Privatbesitz, Düsseldorf; [...]; mind. 1928 "rheinisch-westfälischer" Privatbesitz; [...]; 1935 erworben als Jacob Flegel im Tausch vom Kunstverein für die Rheinlande und Westfalen, Düsseldorf

Inventory numberM 33

Still lifes

Contact

sammlung@kunstpalast.de

Permalink

https://sammlung.kunstpalast.de/en/objects/142329/stillleben-mit-halbiertem-hering

Expand