Lot Essay
Born in Breda, probably of English descent, at the age of thirty-three Collier took his place in the guild of St Luke in Leiden specialising in vanitas still-lifes. After three marriages in that city in just over ten years, the last ending one year before he painted the present picture, he left Leiden for Amsterdam. However, the traditions of Leiden painting stayed with him throughout his subsequent career and were much in demand in London where he spent a productive thirteen years as a trompe l'oeil and still-life artist. Similar compostions to this one by Collier can be found in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam and The Metropolitan Museum, New York.