Fishmarket in Antwerp

Snijders was one of the most important still life and animal painters. After Van Dyck he was the most famous collaborator of Rubens. He lived next to Rockox and signed his testament as a witness.
On the Antwerp wharf, a fishmonger offers salt and freshwater fish. Under the table a cat takes refuge and furtively steals a piece of fish. The scale could point towards the last judgment and it is possible that the painting is a commission from a religious context.