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Frans Francken the Younger, Allegory of Sight CertificateUrsula Härting, 4.11.2003This small wooden panel by Frans Francken the Younger was originally part of a now incomplete series of "The Five Senses" (U. Härting). This image depicts an allegory of the sense of sight: A courtly gentleman is shown embracing a lady and pointing to the mirror in her hand. Beside the figures, a pair of glasses and a telescope - like the mirror representing sight - are shown upon a stool. However, the work also points subtly to a further level of interpretation which will here only be mentioned briefly, namely that relating to sins such as vanity, lasciviousness and luxurious living. Typical of Francken is the playful and delicate way in which these moral connotations are hinted at. The characteristically light and practised glazing technique with which the warm yellow and red tones have been applied lends harmony to this "en miniature" image (U. Härting). 19 x 16 cm