Musées de Langres – Maison des Lumières Denis Diderot – Musée d'Art et d'Histoire

Originally from Leiden, Cornelis de Heem lived in Antwerp and mostly painted still lives, following in the footsteps of his father Jan Davidsz de Heem (1606–1684). Still lives enjoyed great popularity in the 17th century, especially in Dutch and Flemish schools. These elaborate decorative compositions often carried a moral message. The peeled lemon was a ubiquitous symbol of the passage of time and a reminder of mortality.