Frans Snijders was the first specialist in a new Flemish form of still life: the animal still life. Born in Antwerp, he studied under Pieter Brueghel the Younger. In 1608 he made the requisite painter's trip to Italy to view its works of art. The following year he became part of a circle that ultimately included Jacob Jordaens, Jan Brueghel the Elder, and Peter Paul Rubens, helping to establish An
