Treurende filosoof omgeven door vanitas symboliek 1662 - 1736

"Treurende filosoof omgeven door vanitas symboliek" (Mourning Philosopher Surrounded by Vanitas Symbolism) is an etching by Gabriel Ehinger, a Dutch artist born in 1652. This artwork, housed in the Rijksmuseum, depicts a philosopher, surrounded by symbols of mortality, reflecting on the transience of life. The vanitas symbolism includes a skull, bones, a decaying animal, and a broken vase. The inscription "Vanitas vanitatum et omnia vanitas" (Vanity of vanities, all is vanity), a verse from the Book of Ecclesiastes, further reinforces the theme of the artwork. The artwork's emphasis on the fleeting nature of earthly pleasures and the inevitability of death served as a moral reminder for audiences of the 17th and 18th centuries.