Known for his expertly rendered multi-figured genre paintings, Jordaens brings his best to this family portrait.

True to the Rubenesque style of many of his earlier paintings Jordaens based the composition of this piece on Rubens’ own The Circumcision of Christ. Luckily for everyone at Jordaens table, he omitted the naked squirming Christ child and the handsy mohel, replacing them with a much more appetizing loaf of bread. Still, when considering that the bread and wine definitely symbolize the Eucharist, Jordaens might as well have left Baby Jesus out for family dinner.

Jordaens is essentially showing off how happy in faith and family he is. Surrounded by his parents, wife, seven siblings, and three ghost sisters who died in infancy, Jordaens filled this piece with symbols of a happy home. The lute he plays represents harmony in marriage, while the grapevines and adorable spaniel represent fidelity. The smug look on his face represents the fact that he based this party on his family’s celebration of his acceptance into the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke in 1615. Wine, ghosts, and bread aren’t exactly my idea of a rager but to each their own.

This painting is just one of 206 works of art sold to Catherine the Great in 1779 and brought to the Hermitage. This large group of artworks, known as the Walpole collection, belonged to Sir Robert Walpole, Britain’s first and longest running Prime Minister until his death in 1751.