Artwork
Still Life with a Turkey Pie
Still Life with a Turkey Pie is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Pieter Claesz. It dates from 1627 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Overview
Central to the composition is a sizeable turkey pie, surrounded by modest accompaniments such as bread, cheese and a small knife.
Created in 1627, this oil painting by Dutch artist Pieter Claesz depicts a domestic banquet scene. Central to the composition is a sizeable turkey pie, surrounded by modest accompaniments such as bread, cheese and a small knife. The work exemplifies the Dutch still‑life tradition of rendering everyday objects with careful attention to texture and light, and it now belongs to the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
Subject & Meaning
The arrangement presents a meal poised for service, emphasizing the abundance of a simple table spread. By focusing on ordinary foodstuffs, the painting reflects the 17th‑century Dutch interest in material culture and the moral undertones often associated with still‑life, where the fleeting nature of sustenance can allude to the transience of life itself.
Technique & Style
Claesz employs a restrained palette and subtle chiaroscuro to model the surfaces of the pie crust, bread crust, and cheese, creating a tactile sense of volume. The brushwork is smooth, allowing fine details—such as the glint on the knife’s blade—to emerge without overt painterly gestures, characteristic of the quiet realism prevalent in Dutch banquet pieces of the period.
History & Provenance
The canvas entered the collection of Baroness Cecilia‑Maria van Pallandt at Keukenhof Castle by 1881. In 1974 her heirs sold it to the Hague dealer S. Neistad for 300,000 guilders; the dealer subsequently transferred ownership later that year for 832,000 guilders, after which it entered the Rijksmuseum’s holdings, where it remains on display.
Context
Produced during the Dutch Golden Age, the work aligns with a broader trend of depicting domestic interiors and culinary fare as symbols of prosperity and civic virtue. Claesz, known for his refined banquet scenes, contributed to a visual language that celebrated both the material wealth and the modest daily rituals of 17th‑century Holland.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Pieter Claesz was born in 1596 or 1597 in Berchem, near Antwerp, and moved to Haarlem in the Dutch Republic around 1620.
