Allegory of Transience

In this picture five putti are blowing bubbles in a landscape. Putti blowing bubbles are often a symbol of the transience of human life, according to the motto ‘homo bulla’ (man is a bubble). Below there are several objects, amongst them a crown and sceptre, which are signs of power, while the shepherd’s staff may represent peasant life. This implies Death makes no distinction between social classes, thus making kings and peasants equal. On the right we see a globe, an object commonly featured in vanitas still-life paintings.