Pearls in Art: Woman with a Pearl Necklace

We all saw the "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by Johannes Vermeer, but did you know that this is not the only canvas by Vermeer that introduces pearls as the object of fascination?

In fact, there are many other paintings from the Master that incorporate pearls into the scene: Woman with a Pearl Necklace, Woman with a Lute, The Concert, A Lady Writing, Girl with a Red Hat, A Study of a Young Woman, A Portrait of A Young Woman, Mistress and Her Maid, or Lady Writing a Letter with Her Maid, just to name few.

Johannes Vermeer, Woman with a Pearl Necklace, 1664, Berlin Museum

The Woman with a Pearl Necklace has its main focus on pearls. A young noble woman is standing next to the window, but it is not the exterior world that occupies her mind. She looks into a small mirror on the wall and admires herself wearing a strand of pearls. She gently ties two yellow ribbons attached to her necklace, a  movement that reflects her innocent self-satisfaction. The daylight is softly sparkling up her pearls, giving the girl even more pleasure from looking at them. Her mind seems to be lost in contempt as she admires her appearance enhanced by the beauty of pearls. She feels complete and true to herself. 350 years later and we still feel the same about our necklaces, don't we?