She's in the Netherlands, isn't she? Obviously those scales are for weighing hash. She needs to buy stuff for the baby that's almost due.

I thought the same thing as Senyar; baby being due that is, not hash so much.

I have seen people usually cite the painting in the background, which is of the Last Judgement, when analyzing this work - good and bad in the balance, etc. etc. But I love how earthly Vermeer's paintings are; maybe it's just a cheeky juxtaposition.

I like to think she's laughing at the teeny little empty balance because all of her jewels (hanging out of the case) are massive pieces of pirate bling.

I think she's weighing her words on a gold scale. (dutch saying)

Light googling confirms my hunch - she may not be pregnant, it could be a fashion thing. It is lovely.

(off the top of my head, I didn't study Vermeer too much)

See the box of jewels to the left? One way of telling fakes was weight, silver had a standard weight, as did gold, she could be testing the authenticity of her finery with the tongue-in-cheek last judgment painting. I know Vermeer did domestic scenes of his well-heeled household, so this could be a wife or daughter making sure she got the real deal at the market a very uh ....Dutch subject.

General note: probobly not preggers: Fashion, style, etc. From a lot of 1300s work you'd think all women were 8 months due all the time.

Also, art nerdy: note the repetition of orange and blue.

Pearls and mirrors were symbols of vanity, but pearls were also used to signify innocence.

The emptiness of the scales has to mean something - I keep applying modern interpretations to it, which is totally not helpful. My best guess is that she's measuring the wrong things (the open jewel case), which is why the scales are empty and the Last Judgment looms above.


Of course, we could be reading too much into it, and she's just getting the scales in balance so she can weigh her stuff.